School Discipline and Mental Health Related.

A new center focused on improving approaches by primary and secondary schools to behavioral challenges and mental health has been approved by the Board of Trustees of the University of Alabama, Tuscaloosa. This research-designated Center for Interconnected Behavioral and Mental Health Systems, or CIBMHS, combines existing research and service efforts on campus under one organization to boost schools and prepare educators who can implement the methods.

"Schools often view discipline and mental health in students as separate concerns with a separate set of procedures but, in reality, these issues are extremely interrelated," says Daniel Cohen, center codirector and assistant professor of school psychology. "Our work will help schools take an integrated and systems level approach to supporting students in these areas."

The center will integrate methods and interventions from across different disciplines to improve behavior and mental health prevention and treatment for students in kindergarten through 12th grade. CIBMHS aims to conduct rigorous, federally-funded research in the...