• Deb Clemens, Superintendent and Presenter
• Sarah Rich, Moderator
• Leslie Van Leishout, Director of Student Support
• Kirsten Rue, Director of Student Achievement
• Bassie Whipple, Mental Health Specialist (Chinook Middle School, Mountain View Elementary)
• Mandy Garrison, Mental Health Specialist (North Thurston High School)
• Brenda McAferty, Homeless Liaison
• Sonja Lundgren, Elementary School Counselor (Evergreen Forest Elementary)
• Katie Vandenberg, High School Counselor (North Thurston High School)

The Family & Youth Resource Center is a one-stop destination for families and students in need. We are located adjacent to North Thurston High School in the old Bally’s building at 200 Sleater Kinney Road NE, Olympia, 98506.  Walk in hours are Tuesday and Thursday from 9:00–11:00 am, or by appointment.

Families can access free hygiene and laundry supports, food, school supplies and clothing. Laundry services are available. Families can meet with community service providers including Community Action Council, Community Youth Service, DSHS, Family Education Support Services, Family Support Center, Health Care Authority, Sea Mar, and CIELO. 

We have specific open hours, but we do our best to help families whenever they arrive at the FYR Center. Walk-in hours are Tuesday and Thursday from 9:00–11:00 am, or by appointment.

There are more than 700 students who are identified as unhoused who can access our McKinney Vento supports. Students are considered “homeless” if they are living in a motel/hotel, campground, in a shelter, doubled up with another household, at a train or bus station, park, or car, or not living with a parent or guardian. Through state and federal grants, we have four student navigators who can focus on helping students who are unaccompanied youth, removing barriers to their success.  Support includes helping students access services including immediate school enrollment, access to free meals, services including clothing and medical, transportation services, emergency financial assistance, and more. We also partner with outside agencies to assist families with finding and maintaining ongoing permanent, stable housing.  These organizations include CYS, Homes First, Sea Mar, Host Homes through TOGETHER!, NTEF, CAC, FSC, FESS, A Way Home Washington (AWHW), and Anchor Community Initiative in Thurston County.

There are many resources available, but no one knows more about how to get children to the right resources than the child’s school counselor.  They are the contact person for community resources outside of your school and for referral to mental health services in the school. Their contact information is available on your school's website.

NTPS has mental health specialists assigned to each of our school. These professionals hold either a Washington state license as a Licensed Mental Health Counselor or are a Licensed Clinical Social Worker and possess and Educational Support Assistant certification in counseling or social work. They provide preventive education on mental health, facilitate small therapeutic groups, they work one on one with students in need or short term support, connect students and families to community resources, and respond to mental health crises that may arise in school. 

Social Emotional Learning supports academic achievement as well as prosocial behaviors, improves student attitudes toward school, and reduces depression and stress among students. Social and emotional skills increase likelihood of high school graduation, readiness for postsecondary education, and positive relationships. 

NTPS has adopted CharacterStrong, a program that focuses on competencies of self-awareness, self-management, social awareness, relationship skills, and responsible decision making. These align with Washington State SEL standards and benchmarks. We are also weaving in restorative circles into classroom and schoolwide work. The three signature practices of a welcoming inclusion, engaging work, and an optimistic closure are being used in all secondary classrooms. Middle schools are working twice a week with social emotional classes and in high school weekly SEL skills. There are a wide variety of high engagement strategies to select from for teachers of all grade levels. If you want to view lessons for more information, please contact your student’s advisor.

Elementary SEL is taught every day for 20-30 minutes. NTPS uses the Second Step SEL curriculum in grades Pre-K through 5. Skills and concepts taught, and practices include SEL self-awareness, self-management, social awareness, relationship skills and healthy decision-making. While the lessons are taught each day, teachers embed the concepts discussed into the full day. Every subject lends itself to integration of social emotional learning. 

Subjects that are taught include managing emotions, being responsible, problem-solving, and bullying. If there was a specific concern about a particular lesson, a student could be opted out from that lesson.

Our website has a Community Resource Directory that includes links for childcare, food and supplies, housing and finance, internet and utilities, medical and dental and mental health resources.

These positions are similar in that they are both master’s level clinicians working toward the well-being of students. School counselors focus on working with students in the areas of academics, career and college post-graduation planning, and social emotional learning. These are tier 1 efforts to support all students. School counselors identify students in need to mental health support or referrals, and that is where our mental health specialist provides therapeutic groups and individual support. 

The student should contact their student’s high school counselor. The counselor can review options to recover credit, including online credit retrieval courses, summer school and, in some cases, credit waivers. 

We have two dedicated military support team members, Adrienne Perez and Stephanie Laux. Together they support schools in establishing student ambassador clubs to support military students, support families with needed school supplies, and host events to ensure that our military-connected families feel welcome and supported. Additionally, the Military & Family Life Counselors (MFLCs) can provide services to our active duty or newly retired military families at many NTPS schools. MFLCs provide short-term, nonmedical problem-solving counseling and support to assist children and youth, parents, family members and school staff. Except for duty to warn, these services are strictly confidential and are not affiliated with any one branch of military service. Some topics addressed may include: school adjustment, separation and reunion adjustments, daily life issues and behavioral concerns.

Parents will need to sign and return an MFLC Form for students to opt in or out of MFLC services. The consent form can be returned directly to your child's school office or counseling center. To obtain a form or obtain other information, please contact our district Military Support Staff, Adrienne Perez at aperez@nthurston.k12.wa.us or at (360) 412-4900.

Schools that currently have MFLC services include: Olympic View, Horizons, Seven Oaks, and Evergreen Forest.

Mental health absences are called in the same way as any other absence. Please call the attendance secretary to report and excuse the absence. 

If the family requests support, we would refer that to the counselor. If a pattern of absences develops then the school is likely to reach out proactively to see how we can support the family and student and remove barriers to ensure the student can regularly attend.

We have a process to identify and support students with disabilities either through 504 Plans or Individual Education Plans. Your student’s counselor can help identify the best next steps for your student.

At the elementary level, we support students with counselors and during social emotional learning time in the classroom. We highlight and celebrate cultures, so all students feel welcome. For example, Hispanic Heritage Month celebrations include a banner and books in the display window of the library. In Art and Music students receive lessons about the Hispanic cultures. We work hard to make all our students and families feel welcome.
Similar to the elementary level, secondary schools celebrate months such as Black History month. We have a Black Student Union at each high school. We have multiple clubs including our Asian/Pacific Islander Club, Gay Straight Alliance, and Pizza Klatch. We want all students to feel like a part of our schools. 

Thank you for asking! Our community is very compassionate and generous. On Tuesdays between 7:30 and 9:30 AM we are open for donations, but if that time is not convenient, we will accept donations whenever we are open. We are always looking for school supplies, gently used or new clothes, particularly sweats, t-shirts, new socks and underwear. Laundry detergent is also welcome. We have a Hope Account at the district office, and you can donate money to that account through NTPS Financial Services. You can also donate money or gift cards to the North Thurston Education Foundation which is a huge supporter of our services.

We use DESSA when working with students to support their social emotional growth. It’s information that is protected and held private, just like other student information. Only the teacher who did the rating and the student, if they rated themselves, can see the data. The principal, counselor, and program administrators at the district level can see the data.