On Tuesday, it was Kathleen Cote's turn to testify in the Killingly Board of Education's 10-4b hearing. Cote, the former director of mental health, student wellness and family engagement at Killingly Public Schools, took the stand for the fourth day of the hearing.
The 10-4b complaint was made by parents in Killingly, who claim the school district didn’t do enough for student mental health.
Cote testified that the previous Board of Education, which had rejected a student mental health center, influenced the attitude and behavior of the Killingly High School administration in a way that prevented her from doing her job effectively. Cote also voiced support for the student health services that are currently in place at the Intermediate and high schools.
Attorney Michael McKeon, representing the state Board of Education, questioned Cote, as did Attorney Andrew Feinstein, representing the concerned citizens, and Attorney Patrick Noonan, the new legal representation for the district.
Cote voiced support for the health center
Cote left the district in February 2024 to run her own private practice as a licensed professional counselor. She started the practice in November 2023, while working for Killingly Public Schools. Cote said she left the district because she didn’t feel supported enough, wasn’t having the impact she wanted to have, and her private practice got busy.
Cote joined the Killingly school district in 2021 after serving in multiple education roles across the state, including principal of the alternative high school at Norwich Free Academy for nine years.
Robert Angeli was superintendent when she was first hired as director of pupil services. They both came from districts that had student health centers, so they supported them for Killingly, Cote said.
Angeli sought the grant for a school-based health center, which was turned down by the board. Angeli’s three-year superintendent’s contract was not renewed by the Killingly Board of Education at the end of the 2022-23 school year.
Cote has respect for the Killingly Board of Education, but “when I started in the district, the Board of Education behaved in a way that I found appalling,” and it influenced building administrators at Killingly High School.
At one point, Killingly High School administrators asked her to leave a meeting with the school counselors, held shortly after a student passed away, she said.
“I should be doing this, and I felt that I wasn’t able to,” she said.
Cote said she doesn’t doubt people tried to do what was best for students, but people disagreed on what the best thing was.
Keep Community Health Resources
Though the original proposal would have contracted with Generations Family Health Centers for Killingly Public Schools, a reputable organization, the district needs to stay with Community Health Resources (CHR), Cote said.
Cote testified that she and others started the work with CHR before the current school year started. CHR has been professional and flexible in its work with the district and looks to expand the number of days it can serve high school students.
Continuity of care is also important. Some students already saw CHR for mental health services, so families moved services to the school.
CHR is expected to expand services to all Killingly Public Schools.
Killingly Public Schools has plenty of its own certified and licensed mental health professionals who should remain “the driver” in making decisions for student mental health.
“We have plenty of people in the district with a great deal of experience,” she said.
How the board got here
In April 2022, a 10-4b complaint was filed with the state Board of Education by parents in Killingly. The complaint was made because Killingly Board of Education rejected grant funding for Generations Family Health to start a school-based mental health center.
The first hearing for the complaint was held on Nov. 15, 2023. Subsequent hearings have been held on Nov. 30 and Dec. 13. A hearing in January was postponed as the Killingly Board of Education sought new legal representation.
The school board preferred Community Health Center (CHC) to work with them due to better online reviews and a requirement for parental opt-in. CHC backed out, and the Killingly Board of Education worked with Community Health Resources for the same reasons, then-Vice Chair Kelly Martin said at the first hearing.
Superintendent Susan Nash-Dietzel testified at the first hearing that the district provides for student mental health needs, including programs preventing bullying and absenteeism.
Nash-Dietzel was also questioned on the Board of Education’s response to a survey by the Southeastern Regional Action Council. Conducted in December 2021, 449 students were surveyed and 28% of responders reported thoughts of self-harm, 18.2% of students hurting themselves on purpose, and 14.7% seriously considered attempting suicide. The board formed an ad-hoc committee in September 2022, and the board didn’t specifically meet with her about the survey results.
Killingly did the survey to better tailor school services to student needs. The survey also asked about student access to and use of alcohol, tobacco and recreational drugs. Counseling, programs about vaping, and more were used to address needs, Nash-Dietzel said.
The next hearing is set for April 16. After the hearing, Cote, Noonan and Nash-Dietzel declined The Bulletin’s request for further comment.
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