​1. The Council issued recommendations related to support for school nursing.  Recommendations include: establishing the goal of at least one full-time registered nurse in every school as a public health and educational priority for the State; supporting additional funding for school health services through Concentration of Poverty Grants and future Medicaid billing; collecting and reporting on key school health staffing data; and supporting school nursing workforce initiatives such as loan forgiveness, career ladders, credentialing, mentoring, and others.   

In 2017, the Maryland General Assembly approved legislation that transferred the staffing responsibilities of the Council from the Maryland State Department of Education to the Department of Health. Under the legislation, the Maryland Community Health Resources Commission (CHRC) provides staffing support for the Council and is permitted to seek the assistance of organizations with expertise in school-based health care to support the work of the Council. The Council will report specified findings and recommendations to the Department of Health, the Department of Education and the CHRC by December 31 of each year. 

In addition to staffing the Council, the CHRC has provided a number of grants to support SBHCs and school health programs.  For more information, click here​​.

​Membership:

The Council is led by its Chair, Kate Connor, M.D., MSPH, and its Vice-Chair, Patryce Toye, M.D. The Gubernatorial appointees to the Council are as follows:

Kate Connor, M.D., MSPH, Chair, representing school-based health care centers
Patryce Toye, M.D., Vice-Chair, representing Maryland Assembly on School-Based Health Care
Erin Dorrien, representing Maryland Assembly on School-Based Health Care
Jeanett Peralta, representing Maryland Assembly on School-Based Health Care
Derek Simmons, representing Public Schools Superintendents Association of Maryland
Nicole Kreamer, representing Maryland Association of Boards of Education
Jonathan Garrick, representing a secondary school principal with a SBHC
Amanda Wright, representing the Maryland Hospital Association
Casey Scott, representing local health officers
Christina M. Bartz, representing Federally Qualified Health Centers​
Arethusa S. Kirk, M.D., representing managed care organizations
Alexandra DeRuggiero, representing commercial health insurance carriers
Diana Fertsch, M.D., representing Maryland Chapter of American Academy of Pediatrics
Katherine Hagner, representing the Maryland Association of School Nurses

The Council currently has two vacancies:  elementary school principal of a school with a SBHC, and parent of a child served by a SBHC.

Council Workgroups: 

Systems Integration and Funding Workgroup, chaired by Kate Connor

The Priorities of the System Integration and Funding Workgroup are to: (1) Understand local and national models for system integration and funding for SBHC; (2) Identify ways that SBHCs are leveraging resources and coordinating care across state and local agencies and service providers; (3) Identify the funding and service linkages between MSDE, DHMH, DHS, and other public agencies; (4) Clarify the roles and improve the coordination across and within agencies (state and local) making sure systems are aligned to make the SBHC initiative sustainable longterm; and (5) Review current SBHC RFP and application process to identify ways to improve the review and approval of SBHC.​

​Data Collection and Reporting Workgroup, chair: vacant

The priorities of the Data Collection and Reporting Workgroup are to: (1) Establish performance measures to present the impact of SBHCs on health and education outcomes of students; (2) Identify opportunities to link SBHC utilization data to educational outcomes; (3) Identify opportunities to better capture data for substance abuse and behavioral health services; and (4) Develop a trend analysis to understand the impact of SBHC over time by jurisdiction and population served​.

Quality and Best Practices Workgroup, chaired by Jean-Marie Kelly and Patryce Toye, M.D.

The priorities of the Quality and Best Practices Workgroup are to: (1) Revise the SBHC standards; (2) Study SBHC sponsorship models employed in Maryland and nationally; (3) Understand current approaches to coordination of care and determine gaps in the provision of care (somatic, substance abuse and behavioral health services); and (4) Identify effective, sustainable business models – state and national best practices​.​​​​​
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