College of Education researchers received U.S. Department of Education grants totaling more than $5 million this year to address training gaps for mental health counseling, special education teachers and speech-language pathologists working in K-12 schools.

Faculty members Matthew Lemberger-Truelove, Peggy Ceballos and Dan Li will focus on expanding mental health care and training in Title I schools in Denton and Lewisville ISDs. The goal is to not only increase the number of mental health providers, but also ensure these incoming professionals are prepared to respond to the evolving needs within schools.

In a separate project, professors Miriam Boesch and Katsura Aoyama launched the Project Communicate master's program this fall, training special education teachers and speech-language pathologists to better serve students with autism spectrum disorder. Students have interdisciplinary coursework and conduct supervised fieldwork in Dallas-Fort Worth area schools.