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Support Your Highest-Need Students Now. Be Ready for What’s Next in Illinois.

The students most likely to emerge through future mental health screenings are already in your schools. Effective School Solutions helps Illinois districts build strong Tier 3 support now for the 3–5% of students with the most intensive emotional and behavioral needs, while laying the groundwork for annual screening in grades 3–12 beginning in 2027–28. That means stronger workflows, clearer family communication, better MTSS response, and smarter planning if the state provides a no-cost qualifying tool.
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Your highest-need students cannot wait for 2027.

Districts do not need to wait for Illinois’ screening rollout to act. Effective School Solutions provides MTSS-aligned Tier 3, in-school clinical support for the 3–5% of students with the highest-acuity needs.
 
By strengthening support now, districts can build the follow-up processes and response capacity future screening will require.

Start with Tier 3. Build from there.

Universal screening is an important first step to ensuring all students can thrive in your schools, but it is not the full program. ISBE’s readiness materials make clear that districts need more than a tool: they need policies, operations, culture and awareness, partnership and capacity, and engagement and communications.

If a district cannot respond consistently for the students already presenting with the highest needs, screening will only make that gap more visible as you uncover additional students who need school-based mental health care.

Tier 3 Support for Students Who Need More Right Now

Effective School Solutions helps districts strengthen intensive, in-school support for students whose emotional, behavioral, and mental health needs are already exceeding current capacity. Our Tier 3 clinical model is designed for the 3–5% of students with the most severe needs.

MTSS Response Infrastructure That Can Scale

As districts prepare for broader screening expectations, Effective School Solutions helps clarify roles, follow-up workflows, escalation pathways, and the policies, procedures, and artifacts needed to support a stronger MTSS response.

Planning for the Illinois Screening Shift

Effective School Solutions services include Mental Health Needs Assessments, Strategic Planning, MTSS Playbook consultation and design, professional learning and coaching, and in-school clinical programs to help districts prepare for implementation in a practical, school-based way.

The policy change is coming. The real runway is now.

ISBE says resource materials, model procedures, and guidance for universal mental health screening will be available by September 1, 2026. Illinois law says districts must offer annual mental health screenings to students in grades 3–12 beginning in the 2027–28 school year.
 
If your district is already seeing students whose needs exceed your current capacity, Effective School Solutions can help you strengthen Tier 3 support now while building a practical path toward screening readiness. From readiness assessment and MTSS planning to in-school clinical support design, we help districts support current students and prepare for the change Illinois is bringing next.
 
Support students now. Be ready for what is next.
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FAQ

Because the students with the highest needs are already in your schools today, and Illinois’ readiness framework makes clear that districts need time to prepare policies, workflows, communications, and follow-up systems before annual screening begins. ISBE guidance and model procedures are due by September 1, 2026.

Illinois law says districts must offer mental health screenings to students in grades 3–12 at least once each year beginning in the 2027–28 school year, but only in years when the State has procured a qualifying self-report screening tool and made it available at no cost.

No. The current Illinois requirement applies to grades 3–12. Districts may choose to offer screenings in K–2, but that is not part of the statewide requirement.

No. ISBE says SEL screeners do not meet the requirements of a qualifying mental health screener on their own.

No. ISBE says screening is a preliminary evaluation used to identify possible signs of a problem that may require further evaluation and support; it does not result in a diagnosis.

Effective School Solutions helps districts in two connected ways: strengthening support now for students with the highest-acuity needs and helping district teams prepare the planning, MTSS infrastructure, and support capacity needed for the Illinois screening rollout.

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Contact us to learn more about our evidence-based clinical programs and how we can help students you serve thrive.
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Case studies

Go to Case Studies
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Building Capacity: Supporting Teachers and Students

Freehold Regional High School District educates approximately 10,300 students in six high schools across a 200-square-mile region in central New Jersey. In the wake of the pandemic – and the resulting spike in students’ mental health needs – the district undertook a partnership with Effective School Solutions to build professional..
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Treating Anxiety in Teens at School: A Parent’s Story

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Empowering Students Through Comprehensive Mental Health Supports: 95% of Parents See Improvement

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Book Your Illinois Tier 3 + Screening Readiness Session

In a brief planning conversation, we can discuss:

  • where your highest-need students are straining current capacity
  • what Tier 3 and follow-up systems need to be strengthened now
  • where your district stands across ISBE’s readiness domains
  • how to build a practical path from today’s student needs to tomorrow’s screening expectations

ISBE’s readiness framework emphasizes policies, operations, culture and awareness, partnership and capacity, and engagement and communications. Effective School Solutions can help districts think through those implementation needs in a practical, school-based way.

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What is your district working on right now?

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Let's Discuss the Mental Health Needs of Your Students

Fill out the form to request a meeting with one of our clinical experts to explore ways we can partner to strengthen your mental health programs.

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For California school districts

In-school mental health services and simplified CYBHI reimbursement.

We help districts build clinical programming, manage the CYBHI reimbursement process, and capture more eligible reimbursement without adding administrative burden.

  • Implement an in-school clinical program
  • Navigate CYBHI reimbursement from setup through claims
  • Maximize eligible reimbursement with less admin lift 
See How CYBHI Support Works

Learn more about Funding Sustainable School-Based Mental Health Programs

Complete this form to schedule a free mental health planning session where we will discuss available financial sources you can leverage to fund school-based mental health programs in your district.

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Our Unwavering Focus on Data Collection

At ESS, we have an unrelenting focus on data, measuring results, and communicating to our partners the proven impact our programming has on mental health, school outcomes and financial sustainability.

With every ESS partner, we will:

• Set data driven goals at the beginning of every implementation

• Have regular “Report Card” meetings in which we share the impact of ESS services

• Monitor data along the way to look for potential risk areas so that these can be proactively addressed

Learn more about our Will to Wellness 6 Step Framework

Complete this form to discuss best practices for districts, states, and federal policymakers that will reinvent mental health in schools over the next five years.

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Speak with our experts to learn how your district can improve outcomes and reduce costs

Complete this form to schedule a free consultation to learn more about your needs and challenges and to provide insights on where you may be able to improve mental health support.

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