‘Rosa Powered’ app supports student mental health

Rosa Powered, a new app that gives schools access to professional crisis intervention resources and provides students with daily mental health support, will soon be available to area school districts.

The app, powered by Behavioral Health Response, is now being offered to St. Louis metro area schools with plans for implementation for the 2025-2026 academic year. 

BHR offers round-the-clock support through a telephone crisis hotline, face-to-face assessments, and collaborative partnerships with community mental health centers. 

In Missouri, where 105,000 youth experienced at least one major depressive episode in the past year, only 53.3% of youth received mental health services. 

“The launch of Rosa Powered represents a major step forward in how we support student mental health,” said Robert Hughes, BHR chief business development officer.

“By combining Rosa’s innovative monitoring capabilities with BHR’s professional crisis response services, we’re creating a comprehensive safety net that can identify, respond to, and help prevent mental health crises in our schools.”

As a web-based software, ROSA enables students to complete clinically grounded mental well-being check-ins. ROSA aggregates this data and then sends it to teachers and counselors, who can now fully see which students have indicated they need immediate support. 

St. Louis native Marcus Howard, founder of GreaterHealth Pharmacy & Wellness, the first Black-owned pharmacy in Missouri, leads ROSA, which he founded in Chapel Hill, N.C., in 2022.

“ROSA is a counseling friend for students and a powerful data tool for schools,” said Howard, a University of North Carolina graduate.

“The name, ROSA, aims to broaden outreach in underrepresented communities. The cultural relevance of educational materials is key in how Black or Latinx students connect to the material,” Howard said in a 2022 GrepBeat.com article.

“It’s fitting the name “Rosa” is a familiar one in the Latinx community and might also bring to mind Rosa Parks, the prominent civil rights leader.”

The effort marks the first time area schools will have access to technology that combines mental health support with BHR’s proven crisis response services.

The program integrates with BHR’s established crisis response infrastructure, providing immediate access to professional support that includes virtual consultation, and in-person interventions as needed.

Rosa Powered provides schools with a sophisticated early warning system that monitors student well-being through regular check-ins and assessments. The app uses a clear yellow/red alert system to identify students who may need additional support.

Unlike other mental health apps, when concerns are identified, BHR’s professional crisis response team can provide immediate intervention that ranges from in-app support to in-person assistance. The assessment questions may include ‘How are you feeling today?’ or a more serious question can be ‘Do you want to hurt yourself?’ 

“Based on the series of responses, we have a better understanding mentally of what the student is facing,” said Hughes.

He says the app will help staff get students immediate help when they need it, but also, they can gauge specifically the type of help based on the severity. 

“All too often the child may not be comfortable with communicating how they feel, or they may not know how to articulate their emotions,” Hughes said. 

School administrators receive comprehensive dashboard access to identify trends while maintaining student privacy. Teachers and staff undergo specialized training to effectively integrate the system into their existing student support framework.

Recent data underscores the urgency for enhanced mental health support in Missouri schools. Some 63% of teachers in this year’s Missouri State Teachers Association Survey cited student behavior as one of the reasons they consider leaving the profession, with the mental health crisis students are facing as a primary concern.

The survey foretells a dismal future for students in Missouri, which is already facing a critical shortage of teachers. More than 70% of respondents reported seriously considering leaving the profession, and over 80% of the respondents say they know a teacher who left the field last year, excluding retirement. 

The survey also shows that student behavior and mental health issues create difficult teaching and learning conditions.

Trauma, poverty, lack of accountability, and unmet basic needs are cited as root causes.

Missouri lags behind most states in children’s health. According to the Kids Count annual report, Missouri ranks 41st in the nation for youth mental health care access.

“The integration of Rosa with BHR’s crisis response capabilities will give our schools a powerful tool for supporting student mental health,” said Dr. Felicia Spratt, LPC, Ed.D., vice president of justice and crisis operations.

“This program helps identify struggling students earlier and ensures professional help is immediately available when needed.”

Ashley Winters is a Report for America reporter for the St. Louis American. 

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