Rep. McNally Announces $1M for Mahoning Valley Community School in Partnership with Mahoning County Mental Health & Recovery Board

COLUMBUS - State Rep. Lauren McNally (D-Youngstown) today announced the Controlling Board’s approval of $1,000,000 in state funds for the Mahoning Valley Community School (MVCS) from the Ohio Department of Mental Health and Addiction Services’ (OhioMHAS) Youth Resiliency Community Capital Projects in Fiscal Year 2024.

“It can be very challenging for families to break through generational hardship, and resources like these are meant to alleviate some of that,” said Rep. McNally. “These dollars, and this facility, will increase the services available for young people, which I am happy to support.”

The MVCS, who will partner with the Mahoning County Mental Health & Recovery Board while also working with Mercy Health and Akron Children’s Hospital, provides youth focused services and supports in Mahoning and Columbiana Counties to help strengthen mental, physical, behavioral health, and vocational skills in preparation for future employment opportunities. With an estimated total project cost of $2,453,651, the state share of which is $1M, will go toward the purchase and renovation of their lot and building, enhancing a space to include 17 classrooms, a special needs room, a daycare facility, a clinical/behavioral health room, a mail office with a board room and administrative offices, a nurse’s clinic, a technology office, workforce development room, and a security office.

The MVCS will provide specialized instruction for students with an Autism diagnosis, with provisions for an Autism-specific curriculum built into the school day. They will also provide credit recovery and individualized education plans that focus on all academic levels, clinical services, and more. Providing these services, which will be open to all Ohio residents and specifically students in Mahoning, Trumbull, and Columbiana Counties, for a period of twenty years is a condition of state support for the project. MVCS will service approximately 250 youth annually.

“Expanding resources to meet the mental and behavioral health needs of our communities is a priority shared by both the Governor and General Assembly,” said Rep. McNally.

The Controlling Board funds are made possible by the General Assembly which provided $92M for mental health and addiction services across the state in House Bill 687. This funding supports renovations and improvements at state behavioral health hospitals, local supportive and recovery housing, mental health treatment facilities, consumer operated services and peer recovery centers, and community-located programming spaces. It also supports community resiliency projects for middle and high school youth, with an emphasis on community capacity for treatment and recovery, risk reduction, improved quality of care, and enhancing partnerships in communities.