Mayor invites Nan Project into youth services overhaul, ARPA funding talks

By Neil Zolot

Mayor Robert Van Campen invited representatives of The Nan Project suicide prevention organization to participate in discussions during his administration’s reorganization of the Youth Development & Enrichment Department. “It would be helpful if you were involved in that,” he told Nan Project Cofounder and Executive Director Jake Cavanaugh during a briefing by Cavanaugh at the School Committee meeting on Monday, February 2.

Van Campen also wants Cavanaugh involved in discussions about how to spend American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) money to fund programs. “We don’t ask schools for funding and there are ARPA funds to expend in the schools,” Cavanaugh said.

The invitation dovetailed with Cavanaugh’s request “for ideas to as to how we can bring our programs to more students in Everett,” a reference to his interest in expanding programs beyond current ones at the High School, Devens and Keverian Schools and in Parent University at the High School in November.

The programs often involve peer counsellors, young people in their 20s, speaking to students about depression and resources to deal with depression and thoughts of suicide. “The focus is on recovery,” Cavanaugh said. “The counsellors go into classrooms and talk about what that was like and what it was like to talk to a counsellor or parent about it.”

He also said, “Getting in front of parents is one of our most difficult tasks, but we’d love to do more of that. We’d like everyone to be part of this conversation. We want to get into every school and in front of as many students and parents as we can.”

In discussion, he added that conversations with children at the elementary school level will use different terms and language than those with Middle and High School students and focus more on feelings in general than depression.

Cavanaugh helped start The Nan Project in 2016 after his sister Nancy, known as Nan, took her own life in 2012 at age 24. “There was a stigma then and there still is now,” he pointed out.

School Committee Ward 5 member and Vice Chairperson Marcony Almeida Barros invited Cavanaugh to the meeting. “I asked them to come so they can tell us about what they do and let the community know how important this is.”

He also mentioned that The Nan Project will be participating in a Youth Council Summit at the State House on Monday, February 9. Cavanaugh added tat there will be peer counsellor training at the YouForward Young Adult Access Center in mid-February, although applications must be made online.

Other business

In other business the School Committee formally approved a proposal to expand preschool and prekindergarten to full-day programs by September that was discussed, but tabled for procedural reasons, on January 20.

At the January 20 meeting, Superintendent William Hart also addressed a concern of Ward 4 member Robin Babcock that Everett was or would be losing state aid as a result of a declining student population. “Funding is related to enrollment and, because of the housing crisis and immigration issues, people are choosing to leave,” Babcock said. “Is it a number that might be concerning? Chelsea lost a significant number and our district is not dissimilar.”

Enrollment totals can and do change during a school year. Months when apartment rental leases end or begin, especially August/September and December/January, often affect the numbers. Hart said the October number was 300 less than October 2024, but 100 have been added since then.

Generally, however, he said, the approximately 7,000 students in the school system is a pretty stable number, with 6,908 reported to the state Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) on October 1, when DESE collects information, and 7,082 currently enrolled. The new number will be submitted to DESE in March when they update district profiles.

He added that the type of students, particularly students who are in their first year of school in the country, regardless of age, and English Language Learners (ELLs), can affect state aid more than the number of students. “It’s based on variables, not just the number of students,” Hart explained. “It’s the kind of students we support. The kind of kids we support provide us with more state funds and continues to grow. The kids we serve come at a higher reimbursement rate. We have kids who need support and are getting reimbursed at a higher rate,” a reference to 43.4% of students being ELLs. The state average is 13.4%. (ELL students are also known as English as a Second Language students and Multi-Language Learners.)

“It sounds like our enrollment is stable, with enrolling students who need support positively impacting the budget,” Babcock reacted.