For school health services and school--based health centers in public and nonpublic schools; provided, that not less than $3,000,000 shall be expended for mental health services in public and nonpublic schools; provided further, that funds shall be distributed to public and nonpublic schools based on the percentage of students in the commonwealth enrolled in each school; provided further, that services shall include, but not be limited to: (i) strengthening the infrastructure of school health services in the areas of personnel and policy development, programming and interdisciplinary collaboration; (ii) developing linkages between school health services programs and community health providers; (iii) incorporating health education programs, including tobacco prevention and cessation activities, in school curricula and in the provision of school--based health services; and (iv) incorporating obesity prevention programs, including nutrition and wellness programs, in school curricula, to address the nutrition and lifestyle habits needed for healthy development; provided further, that funds shall be expended for school nurses and school--based health center programs; provided further, that funds may be expended to pay for nurse salaries for more than 3 school years; provided further, that funds may be expended to address the recommendations of the commission on lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer and questioning youth established in
section 67 of chapter 3 of the General Laws for the reduction of health disparities for gay, lesbian, bisexual, transgender, queer and questioning youth; provided further, that not less than $500,000 shall be expended to enhance the commonwealth's capacity to support the development of school--based bridge programs for youth who have had prolonged school absence due to hospitalization for physical or mental health care; provided further, that not less than $75,000 shall be expended to assist in programming efforts for the Southcoast LGBTQ Network, Inc. in the city of New Bedford; and provided further, that not less than $25,000 shall be expended to the North Quabbin Community Coalition, Inc.
