ORIGINAL PAPER The School Mental Health Capacity Instrument: Development of an Assessment and Consultation Tool

Abstract This paper describes the development of the School Mental Health Capacity Instrument, a new measure designed to capture the extent to which a school is proac-tive in its approach to addressing mental health. The instrument assesses the policies, systems, and activities a school has in place related to intervention, early recogni-tion and referral, and prevention and promotion. We share preliminary psychometric information about the instru-ment, including its excellent internal consistency, good test–retest stability, and evidence of criterion-related validity. The instrument has broad applicability for use by researchers and evaluators. In addition, consultants could use the instrument’s findings as a guide to helping schools become increasingly proactive in the way they address student mental health