September is here, and New Jersey Statewide Student Support Services (NJ4S) Morris-Sussex is hitting the ground running, with multiple programs already scheduled across Morris and Sussex counties for the new school year!
Launched in 2023 by the New Jersey Department of Children and Families, NJ4S uses an innovative statewide hub-and-spoke model to bring prevention, social, emotional, and mental health supports to middle and high school students in New Jersey public schools. By partnering with schools and communities, NJ4S helps address behavioral health concerns early, strengthens resilience, promotes student well-being, and connects young people and their families with appropriate resources and support.
The 2026–2027 school year marks the fourth year of NJ4S working to address the youth mental health crisis through prevention, early identification, and brief intervention services. Programs and services are offered at no cost to students, school districts, families, and communities throughout New Jersey, helping ensure that young people, parents, caregivers, and school staff have access to valuable mental health education and support when they need it.
The school year will begin with a full schedule of prevention programming beginning mid-September. NJ4S is currently in 93% of schools in Morris and Sussex Counties. A total of 1,350 students participated in educational programming last year, and the NJ4S team looks forward to reaching even more children and families during this school year. Upcoming programs for students will address suicide prevention, mental health education, school and community connectedness, healthy relationships, and back-to-school transitions.
The importance of school-based prevention is reflected in Healthy People 2030, an initiative of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. One of its national objectives is to increase the proportion of children and adolescents who receive evidence-based preventive mental health interventions in schools. This objective reinforces the important role schools can play in connecting young people with support before concerns become more serious.
That prevention work is already underway for the new school year. Upcoming programs will address suicide prevention, mental health education, school and community connectedness, healthy relationships, and back-to-school transitions.
Programs for students, parents, caregivers, and school staff scheduled for the fall include Signs of Suicide (SOS), a suicide prevention presentation for students, parents, and caregivers; Teen Outreach Program (TOP); Unity Circle: Calm & Connected; Teen Connection Project (TCP); and the kickoff of our monthly Parent Academy series, Starting Strong: Helping Your Child Thrive This School Year. These programs represent just a sampling of the prevention and support services available through NJ4S Morris-Sussex. Explore the full range of available programs in our program catalog.
Looking ahead, NJ4S Morris-Sussex is expanding its prevention work to address emerging and ongoing concerns affecting students, including eating disorders, chronic absenteeism, and bullying. Prevention consultants are currently being trained in The Body Project, an evidence-based program designed to promote positive body image and reduce eating disorder risk factors among young people.
This school year also brings the launch of a newly redesigned NJ4S Morris-Sussex program catalog. “The catalog has been transformed into a more practical prevention-planning tool for school staff,” said Marissa DeOliveira, MA, supervising prevention consultant at NJ4S Morris-Sussex and primary writer of the redesigned catalog. The updated resource helps school professionals more easily identify programs that align with their students’ strengths and needs. Each program profile outlines its intended audience, duration, group size, areas of focus, expected outcomes, and recommended use, making it easier for schools to select programming that best supports their communities.
With a redesigned catalog, prevention programs already underway, and the combined efforts of our leadership, scheduling, marketing, prevention, and clinical teams, NJ4S Morris-Sussex is ready for an exciting year. We look forward to reaching even more students, parents and caregivers, educators, and community members and supporting them on their journey toward improved mental health and well-being.
-Written by Justina Petrullo, Prevention Consultant for NJ4S Morris/Sussex