If you are a HS/EHS administrator or an individual who is involved in the hiring, support or supervision of a mental health consultant, take a few minutes to jot down the consultant competencies or characteristics that would best serve the children, staff and families in your HS/EHS program. For example, do many of the families speak a language other than English as their primary language? Will the consultant be working mostly with infants and toddlers, as opposed to preschool-age children? After you generate this list, consider how well your current consultant (or one that you plan to hire) fits this criteria and how you might help them connect to resources to round out their skill set, as needed.
An Agreement of Partnership from an Early/Head Start program in South East Kansas illustrates a sample contract.