ORCID

https://orcid.org/https://orcid.org/0009-0005-5783-4086

Date of Award

2025

Document Type

Dissertation

Degree Name

Education (Ed.D.)

Department

Administrative and Instructional Leadership

First Advisor

Barbara Cozza

Second Advisor

Richard Bernato

Third Advisor

James Coviello

Abstract

Due to the significant rise in student mental health concerns, schools are now challenged to find better ways to support students’ overall well-being. The critical importance for schools to include mental health education into their curricula is due to the substantial behavioral changes in students. Educational systems are seeing an increase in student school refusal, suspensions, and cyberbullying, as well as mental health disorders such as depression and anxiety which result in elevated crisis response and emergency room visits due to suicide ideation. The purpose of this study was to understand existing mental health education literacy programs in schools and their impact on students’ overall well-being. Through a qualitative multi-case study and phenomenological approach, the researcher explored educators’ perceptions of existing mental health education programs which support a student’s mental health and the obstacles schools face when trying to implement comprehensive mental health education literacy programs. The focus of this research provided evidence for schools when creating a mental health literacy framework, which hopefully can begin to address the mental crisis amongst our youth. This study intended to fill the gaps in research that have yet to fully explore the implementation of a mental health education literacy framework in schools. Future research will contribute to the areas of health education in schools, providing a framework to utilize when restructuring school programs to be more comprehensive by including mental health education for both students and educators.

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