Mental Health Assessment

SPRING 2025 UPDATE

In March and April 2025, we will be sending links to parents and guardians only to complete an optional BIMAS assessment for all students in grades 3-12. This will consist of a survey for parents/guardians to share their observations about how their children are doing in multiple social-emotional areas.

The assessment must be completed online. A link to complete the BIMAS will be sent to the email we have on file for each parent/guardian in the Parent Portal.

Schedule for Parent/Guardian Assessment

School(s)	Dates
All Elementary Schools	March 19 - March 28, 2025
Lakeside Middle School	April 7 - April 11, 2025
Millville High School	April 14 - April 17, 2025

Mission Statement

To establish a mental health framework of assessments and supports for all students

where the proper resources and research-based strategies are utilized for all students.

Purpose

Identify students in need of support and assist families in finding resources through outside counseling and government agencies.

We will follow a "brief treatment, solution-focused” process: the district will provide initial in-house counseling and support with a solution-focused goal of finding the right help and support for each student.

Please click below to read a copy of our letter to families (English y Español):

Assessment FAQ

What is the BIMAS-2?

BIMAS stands for Behavior Intervention Monitoring Assessment System. The test contains 34 statements that serve the purpose of universal screening. Each statement is accompanied by a scale with 5 choices that ranges from "Never" to "Very Often."

The BIMAS-2 provides universal screening for the following categories:

Behavioral Concern Scales (Identify risks)

Conduct - anger management, bullying behaviors, substance abuse, deviance
Negative Affect - anxiety, depression
Cognitive/Attention - attention, focus, organization, planning, memory

Adaptive Scales (Identify strengths and areas for improvement)

Social -social, communication
Academic Functioning

What kinds of questions are on the assessment?

For grades 3-5, students have the option to fill out the assessment, or the teacher may fill out an assessment for the student.

For students, they will document how much they agree with specific statements, based upon how they have felt within the last 5 days. Options include: “I felt angry”, "I felt sleepy or tired”, “I maintained friendships”, "I felt anxious”, "I tried my hardest when it came to schoolwork”, and “I had thoughts of hurting myself”.

For the teacher assessment, the questions on the assessment are basic behaviors observed in the classroom by the teacher. These would be the same behaviors a teacher would share with a parent on ClassDojo, at a parent-teacher conference, or on an office referral.

Teachers are documenting whether they observed behaviors or actions within the last 5 days. Examples include: “Student appeared angry”, "Student shared what they were thinking about”, "Student appeared tired or sleepy”, "Student engaged in risk taking behavior”, “Student felt emotional or upset”, and “Student followed directions”.

For grades 6-12, students have the option to fill out the assessment. They will document how much they agree with specific statements, based upon how they have felt within the last 5 days. Options include: “I felt angry”, "I felt sleepy or tired”, “I maintained friendships”, "I felt anxious”, "I tried my hardest when it came to schoolwork”, and “I had thoughts of hurting myself”.

How long will the assessment take to complete?

When will my child take this assessment?

All students in grades 3-12 will be assessed during the 2024-2025 school year.

School	Dates	Opt-Out Form Window
Millville High School	September 24 - 26	September 12 - 20
Lakeside Middle School	October 7 - 10	September 27 - October 3
Silver Run Elementary	October 21 - 25	October 11 - 17
Holly Heights Elementary	October 28 - November 1	October 18 - 24
Rieck Avenue Elementary	November 4 - 6	October 25 - 31
Mt. Pleasant Elementary	November 11 - 15	November 1 - 7
R.M. Bacon Elementary	November 11 - 15	November 1 - 7

What happens after my child completes this assessment? Who sees the results?

Once the assessment is complete, only your child's school counselor or child study team case manager will see the results. The District Crisis Coordinator will also be looking at the data to make sure all students who need additional supports and tiered interventions are provided those services.

The information collected during the assessment will be kept confidential and shared only with the individuals above in order to provide appropriate support. We take the privacy of our students very seriously, and all information will be handled in strict accordance with our school's policies and legal requirements.

How will parents/guardians be involved?

How will the results of this test affect my child’s experience at school?

The results will have no effect on their experience at school in regard to attending school and participating in school events. The focus of this assessment is to identify students in need of additional supports through counseling, school involvement in clubs/ activities, the ability for staff to check in and check out with the student, and when necessary, connect families with our outside resources and organizations.

Will the results be in my child’s record?

There will be no results located in a student’s school record. The data is available to the District Crisis Coordinator and the Executive Director of Student Services to review and help plan district-wide school supports and interventions through Tier 1 programs. We will preserve the data to see if a child improves when the assessment is administered in the future and to determine if interventions were successful.