BCPS Administrator Dr. Anita Harvey Sees Behavioral Health with Young People in Mind

This time on the Summit Pointe Podcast, Dr. Anita Harvey, assistant superintendent at Battle Creek Public Schools, talks about what curriculum, instruction, and assessment actually require across pre-K through 12 and why social emotional learning belongs in the same conversation as ELA, math, science, and social studies. 

Dr. Harvey's perspective is shaped by daily work with students and families, and by governance work on our board of directors at Summit Pointe. 

Episode Resources
Careers at Summit Pointe
Summit Pointe First Step

Summit Pointe Podcast 98 is a Livemic Communications production. 

Summit Pointe, the Behavioral Health Authority in Calhoun County, Michigan, is pioneering Community Mental Health Services by developing innovative ideas and community partnerships that lead to high-quality care and a healthy community.

Transcript

Welcome To Summit Point

Richard Piet 0:07

I'm Richard Piet. Welcome back to the Summit Point Podcast. Summit Point, the Behavioral Health Authority in Calhoun County, Michigan, Battle Creek, and surrounding areas. We have a number of these episodes, and I'll tell you when we visit with people about the passion they have for this work, the outcomes that take place, you'll be taken with some of those stories. We invite you to have a listen, and you can also subscribe. Summit Point Podcast. Just search for that where you get podcasts.

Board Spotlight With Dr. Harvey

Richard Piet 0:40

This episode is another in our special series visiting with folks who have stepped up from the community to be involved with Summit Point at the governance level, you might say, the board of directors. Dr. Anita Harvey is the assistant superintendent at the Battle Creek Public Schools, focused on curriculum instruction and assessment. Thanks for being with us.

Dr. Anita Harvey 1:06

Thank you for having

What Curriculum Leadership Really Means

Dr. Anita Harvey 1:07

me.

Richard Piet 1:07

Let's talk about what you're most concerned with when it comes to curriculum instruction and assessment. What does that mean?

Dr. Anita Harvey 1:14

So is what students are being taught, how they're being taught, and ensuring that we are assessing them to be prepared for post-secondary outcomes. So ensuring that they get the guaranteed experiences that will ensure success beyond high school.

Richard Piet 1:30

All right. It only took a couple of seconds to describe that, but that's a significant undertaking, isn't it?

Dr. Anita Harvey 1:36

It is huge because you are looking at the continuum from pre-kindergarten to 12th grade. And so you want to ensure that every stepping stone builds on the previous one in the area of ELA, math, science, social studies, and also in social emotional learning. And so, yes, it is a huge undertaking. And it continuously is work that is rewarding and one that I enjoy every day.

Linking Student Success To Mental Health

Richard Piet 2:07

It may be somewhat obvious to say this, but clearly you bring to the Summit Point Board of Directors a purview that is focused on young people. Why is that important in bringing that to Summit Point? And what do you hope to bring because of it?

Dr. Anita Harvey 2:24

So serving on the Summit Point board is deeply meaningful to me because it aligns both professionally and personally with my commitments to ensure that every child and family has access to support their thriving needs. And so as assistant superintendent, I see firsthand how mental health impacts academic achievement, behavior, attendance, and the overall well-being of a student and family. So being on this board helps me to bridge the systems between education and community health in a way that leads to a more comprehensive and responsive and equitable support for family.

Richard Piet 3:07

Are there ways that maybe already you've witnessed how Summit Point is doing that, connecting uh young people, perhaps some of whom you are part of your district, others maybe not, but you see the connections that are being made. What are some examples of that?

Wraparound Services Inside Schools

Dr. Anita Harvey 3:25

I have witnessed firsthand how the organization has played a part in lifelines for families, especially those who might be situated furthest from success or may fall through cracks. So their work is providing accessible mental health services, crisis prevention, substance abuse support, and essentially wraparound services. A personal story: when I moved here to Battle Creek, I served as the ninth grade academy principal. And my initial relationship with Summit Point stemmed around wraparound services for my young people who were struggling with things outside of the school day that was starting to impact their school day achievement. And so I saw in-home therapists come to school. I saw school-based therapists show up on a consistent daily, weekly, monthly basis to provide support. And it was so impactful. You saw the difference that it made in their school life career. So being on the board for me is not only continuing those services, but also establishing a bridge of trust in community that historically have been underserved and using that to be transformative in the model.

The Cost Of Waiting For Help

Richard Piet 4:47

What's the risk? I think we can presume it, but I want to hear you say it. What's the risk if we don't do that? Someone who is in their formative educational years, this is the opportunity they have for the foundational learning that they need. And there's some kind of behavioral health situation that's deterring them from that goal. What happens if that is not addressed?

Dr. Anita Harvey 5:13

A lot of people think that ignoring the problem makes it go away. And it actually does just the opposite. It intensifies and exacerbates the issue. And so prolonging support only gets in the way of future success. And so I've also seen the opposite of when mental health services have not been fully embraced and how that has impacted the students' school life and even more so beyond school. So it is safe to say that ignoring is not the answer, but it's really about how do we communicate and make services accessible to families so that they can see the value add in signing up

How Families Can Start Today

Dr. Anita Harvey 5:59

for them.

Richard Piet 5:59

Let's suppose there's the parents of a young person, let's say, who have acknowledged perhaps to themselves that there could be a behavioral health issue, but they haven't addressed it yet. And now they're hearing you talk about this and encourage them to address it, but they're still a little reticent. What would you say to them?

Dr. Anita Harvey 6:20

There are a lot of on points to get help. And so the first starts with acknowledgement and saying, I'm seeking services, I'm seeking support. And then it just takes a phone call. It just takes a phone call to say, I'm not certain what I'm asking for, but here's the need, and allowing the services and the therapists and the organization to filter the pathway that is needed to get the support. So it is as simple as a phone call to say, here's what I'm dealing with, here's what is a stressor for my child and our family, and I'm seeking support, I'm seeking help, and allow the professionals to um guide you on the path to getting just that.

Richard Piet 7:01

Could even be a walk-in at first step at 175 College Street, if you'd like it to be, if you want to be in front of someone, and if the inspiration to do that happens at three in the morning, uh that can be done then as well. So point well taken. Do you suppose this is a two-way

Bringing Insights Back To Schools

Richard Piet 7:21

street? And by that I mean your experience as a board member for Summit Point and associating yourself more closely to the inner workings of the organization is something you can take back to the Battle Creek Public Schools and give you a different view of things?

Dr. Anita Harvey 7:40

Certainly. We have structures in our district that are connecting pieces so that we have the platform for Summit Point to integrate and to support our students and it's happening right now. And what I'm learning is about the multitude of services have we tapped into a few, but there are so many more available to our young people and to our families. And so because I am getting more knowledge, understanding, and wisdom around the totality of what Summit Point offers, I can then be an advocate and a bridge to connect what is happening in community, in schools, and in this organization.

A Student Success Story

Richard Piet 8:23

Are there success stories that you can call to mind? Having seen students that perhaps have done as you've suggested and been connected to services somehow. And I think we've inferred it, but let's make sure we say it. They've gotten a course correction and they're uh pursuing those educational goals perhaps better than they were.

Dr. Anita Harvey 8:49

I have countless stories, but one in particular that comes to mind because I'm very well still connected to her. And it was one of the students that in my first couple of years in Battle Creek as a principal, she struggled. She struggled so much because it wasn't just about school, it was about her family structure and some of the temporary moments that she was experiencing that felt so permanent. And we connected her. Her family was willing also to get the level of support needed. And so we connected her to wraparound services, and I saw firsthand how she began to advocate and to connect to what she was going through and asked for the support needed, not only at home, but also in school. To fast forward, and that was about 12 years ago, to fast forward to this day, I still watch her have a thriving cosmetology career. She is an entrepreneur and she took her passion for art, which was one of the coping strategies that she used to get through that tough time. She took her passion for art and turned into an entrepreneurial revenue making for her. And she still to this day, when we see each other, she thanks me for giving her that pathway to connect with someone to help her understand and unpack that this was just a temporary time that she needed some strategies to just push through and to go forward with her career. And so that's just one story of what the vitality of connecting to services could look like. And it was my knowledge of understanding someone is geared towards supporting this need. At the school level, sometimes we get bombarded with a lot of needs and we're not certain where to go, who to call. But knowing the robust structure of Summit Point and the mental health services that they offer, now I can see the pathways to support.

Richard Piet 11:00

And you alluded to it, but this, of course, is a professional connection, but it also means something personally to you.

Dr. Anita Harvey 11:07

Absolutely. To see a young person tap into their potential and thrive, especially when you know the struggle and you know what they've overcome. It is absolutely rewarding to see the growth and the transformation.

Richard Piet 11:21

Well, there you are. That's the connection for Dr. Anita Harvey, who spends her days in education at Battle Creek Public Schools, but also brings that purview to the Summit Point Board of Directors. And we're happy to have had this time to understand it in this board spotlight. Thank you. Thank you.

Subscribe And Careers At Summit Point

Richard Piet 11:40

Subscribe to the Summit Point podcast where you get them, Summit Point, point with an E, and you'll find it and you'll get little notices when new episodes like this come available. Working at Summit Point means you're not just part of a team, you're joining a mission. We make a meaningful difference every day in the lives of those we serve. If you're looking for a workplace where your voice is valued, your growth is supported, and your work has purpose, you've found the right place. Check out the Careers page on the Summit Point website. The link is in the show notes.