Press Release

Cecil County, MD, January 14, 2025 – Today, Greenspace Health, North America’s leader in advancing behavioral healthcare through Measurement-Based Care (MBC), and Upper Bay Counseling & Support Services, Inc., in collaboration with Cecil County Public Schools, are thrilled to announce their strategic partnership to enhance student mental health across Cecil County through the launch of BrightPath—a digital student wellbeing hub. BrightPath provides students and their parents or guardians with seamless access to a comprehensive library of mental health supports and services available across the county, making it easier than ever to find the right resources when they’re needed most.

With a robust selection of self-guided psychoeducational, preventative resources, and direct mental health services, BrightPath empowers students and their families to proactively manage and improve their mental health. For more information, please visit BrightPathCecil.com.

With support from the Maryland Community Health Resources Commission’s (CHRC) Coordinated Community Supports Grant, BrightPath’s initial 45-day pilot served four middle/high schools and eight elementary Schools in Cecil County, which included Elkton Middle, Elkton High, Bohemia Manor Middle, Bohemia Manor High, Calvert Elementary, Chesapeake City Elementary, Charlestown Elementary, Cecilton Elementary, Cecil Manor Elementary, Bay View Elementary, Elk Neck Elementary and Thomson Estates Elementary. The pilot included 75 participating students and their parents/guardians, with 28% of users accessing at least one resource on their first visit to the platform.  With promising initial engagement and outcomes, BrightPath will now be rolled out to all schools across the county (29 schools), impacting approximately 15,047 students (see participating schools below). 

“We are thrilled to partner with Greenspace to bring BrightPath to Cecil County students and families,” said Suanne Blumberg, CEO at Upper Bay Counseling & Support Services, Inc.  “Recent reports show that over 34% of high school students and over 25% of middle school students in Cecil County identified that their mental health ‘was not good’. With support from the CHRC grant, we’re able to provide a comprehensive, accessible, and effective mental health support system to empower Cecil County students and parents/guardians with the resources and knowledge they need to maintain or improve student mental health. We encourage any student or parent/guardian looking for mental health support to explore the resources and services available at BrightPathCecil.com.”

“Our partnership with Upper Bay and Cecil County Public Schools to launch BrightPath is a transformative step in addressing the behavioral health crisis facing young people in Maryland and nationwide,” said Jesse Hayman, Chief Growth Officer at Greenspace Health. “BrightPath provides students and families with a digital front door to mental health resources, empowering them to better understand and manage their mental health and easily connect with the support that best fits their needs. This initiative has the potential to significantly enhance student wellness across Cecil County and we’re honored to be a part of it.”

“Cecil County Public Schools is always looking for innovative ways to address the significant mental health challenges our students are facing, and we are hopeful that BrightPath will be an impactful resource for students and families,” said Kristen Lehr, Coordinator of Behavior/Mental Health Services at Cecil County Public Schools. 

Funding was made available by the Maryland General Assembly under the Blueprint for Maryland’s Future (Ch. 36 of 2021). “The Consortium is pleased to partner with Upper Bay and Greenspace to support the mental health and wellbeing of students in Cecil County,” said Consortium Chair David Rudolph. “We look forward to working with Upper Bay and Greenspace as they implement this grant.”  

 To learn more about BrightPath, please visit BrightPathCecil.com 

Participating Schools: Elkton High, Elkton Middle, Bohemia Manor High, Bohemia Manor Middle, Rising Sun High, Rising Sun Middle, North East Middle, Bay View Elementary, Calvert Elementary, Cecil Manor Elementary, Cecilton Elementary, Charlestown Elementary, Chesapeake City Elementary, Elk Neck Elementary, Rising Sun Elementary, Thomson Estates Elementary, North East High, Perryville Middle, Perryville High, Cherry Hill Middle, Cecil County School of Technology, Bainbridge Elementary, Conowingo Elementary, Gilpin Manor Elementary, Holly Hall Elementary, Kenmore Elementary, Leeds Elementary, North East Elementary, Perryville Elementary.  

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MEDIA CONTACT:

JoAnne Stayner                     

joanne@getfreshpr.com            

604.603.0657

ABOUT UPPER BAY COUNSELING & SUPPORT SERVICES, Inc.

Upper Bay Counseling & Support Services, Inc. provides a broad and expanding range of high quality behavioral health and community services. They are one of the largest providers of behavioral and mental health services in Cecil and Harford counties in Maryland. Their staff includes psychiatrists, nurse practitioners, psychologists, social workers, licensed professional counselors, nurses, rehabilitation counselors, residential counselors, and case managers.

They serve a wide array of individuals—more than 2,000 annually who have behavioral or mental health concerns.       

ABOUT CECIL COUNTY PUBLIC SCHOOLS

Cecil County Public Schools is a public education system serving the residents of Cecil County, Maryland. The system has approximately 14,970 students and 29 schools – 17 elementary, 6 middle, 5 high, and 1 technical school.

ABOUT GREENSPACE HEALTH

Greenspace transforms mental health services by improving the way that mental healthcare is accessed, measured and delivered. Their Measurement Platform enables mental health providers and organizations to implement consistent, evidence-based measurement (often referred to as routine patient-reported outcome measures or PROMs) into their practice. This model is proven to significantly improve patient results while generating valuable data for organizations to enhance their quality of care. Greenspace’s MBC solutions have been implemented across over 500 community and private clinics, hospitals and healthcare systems, improving the patient experience and driving better-coordinated care and outcomes. To learn more about MBC, please visit greenspacehealth.com. 

ABOUT THE MARYLAND CONSORTIUM IN COORDINATED COMMUNITY SUPPORTS 

The Maryland Consortium on Coordinated Community Supports (Consortium) was established by the Maryland General Assembly as part of the Blueprint for Maryland’s Future to create a statewide framework to increase access to coordinated, non-stigmatized, comprehensive behavioral health services statewide. The CHRC serves as the Consortium’s fiscal agent and provides staff support for the Consortium. More information about the Consortium can be found here.

ABOUT THE MARYLAND COMMUNITY HEALTH RESOURCES COMMISSION (CHRC)

The CHRC was created by the Maryland General Assembly in 2005 to expand access to health care for low-income Marylanders and underserved communities across the state and to bolster the capacity of the health care safety net infrastructure to deliver affordable, high-quality health services. The CHRC is an independent commission within the Maryland Department of Health, and its 11 Commissioners are appointed by the Governor. Since its inception, the CHRC has awarded 866 grants totaling $291.7 million, supporting programs in all 24 jurisdictions of the state. More information about the CHRC can be found here.

Read the full Press Release.