# Prevention and Early Identification for High Risk Youth in School-based Clinics

> **NIH NIH P50** · CAMBRIDGE HEALTH ALLIANCE · 2021 · $123,000

## Abstract

PROJECT SUMMARY AND ABSTRACT – Cambridge Health Alliance
ALACRITY for Early Screening and Treatment of High Risk Youth (eSToRY)
R34 Prevention and Early Identification for High Risk Youth in School-based Clinics
The proposed project aims to implement and test tools necessary to prevent transitions to mental illness
among at-risk youth, and particularly at-risk racial/ethnic and language (REL)-minority youth. Risk factors for
REL-minority youth can be heightened due to their greater likelihood of experiencing discrimination and
socioeconomic barriers and their subsequent impacts on access and engagement in treatment and overall
wellness. The overall aim of this project is to prevent and remediate a surge in youth mental illness and to
reduce persistent treatment disparities. First, we propose to use a remote adaptive testing technology, “K-
CAT+”, to provide rapid community-based screening. Second, we will evaluate the effectiveness of a targeted,
online health promotion intervention, COPE2THRIVE (C2T), to build resilience in a REL-diverse sample of
school-aged youth. Third, we will assess whether this approach mitigates increased risk faced by racial/ethnic
and language (REL)-minority youth.
In Aim 1, we test the feasibility and acceptability of a parent- and youth-reported electronic mental health
screener, K-CAT, among 12-17 year old youth in a school-based setting. The adaptive screening platform, K-
CAT, reduces the time and total number of measures that are required. We supplement K-CAT (to make “K-
CAT+”) with measures of functional status, complex trauma, and individual- and neighborhood-level social
determinants of health (SDOH). In Aim 2, we test the feasibility, acceptability, and preliminary effectiveness of
the COPE2THRIVE (C2T) intervention, a resilience intervention targeting the mechanism of coping self-
efficacy to reduce symptoms and improve function. We select youth determined by the K-CAT+ to be at
moderate risk for mental illness. In Aim 3, we assess whether the combination of early school-based screening
and the preventive C2T intervention reduces disparities in engagement in treatment, and reduces symptoms
and improves function for REL-minorities.
The screening and preventive interventions tested in this project have the potential to reduce persistent REL
disparities in access and engagement in treatment and mental health outcomes, by enhancing the availability
and ease of screening, overcoming known biases in recognition and referral, and by intervening earlier than
usual among at-risk REL-minority youth.

## Key facts

- **NIH application ID:** 10205662
- **Project number:** 1P50MH126283-01
- **Recipient organization:** CAMBRIDGE HEALTH ALLIANCE
- **Principal Investigator:** Margaret Weiss
- **Activity code:** P50 (R01, R21, SBIR, etc.)
- **Funding institute:** NIH
- **Fiscal year:** 2021
- **Award amount:** $123,000
- **Award type:** 1
- **Project period:** 2021-05-01 → 2025-03-31

## Primary source

NIH RePORTER: https://reporter.nih.gov/project-details/10205662

## Citation

> US National Institutes of Health, RePORTER application 10205662, Prevention and Early Identification for High Risk Youth in School-based Clinics (1P50MH126283-01). Retrieved via AI Analytics 2026-05-24 from https://api.ai-analytics.org/grant/nih/10205662. Licensed CC0.

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