Cochise County approves Year 2 of school-based mental health grant, fentanyl pilot and school safety app accounts

The Cochise County Board of Supervisors voted Feb. 10 to approve a set of school-focused initiatives, including Year 2 of a federally funded school-based mental health grant, a software agreement for a fentanyl-reduction pilot and permission to establish Apple and Google developer accounts for a safety app.

Speaker 4 moved and Speaker 3 seconded approval of Year 2 of the Cochise County Education Service Agency school-based mental health grant for $322,268, effective Jan. 1 through Dec. 31, 2026. Project coordinator Lorena Telesaw said the grant builds on year one and will expand staff, noting the team has already hired a school counselor and plans to increase the share of students reached from 20% to 25% in year two. "We would hope to create a Cochise County consortium" from data collected under the grant, Telesaw said.

The board also approved a software services agreement with Village Creek Corporation (DBA Paths) for a Cochise County Fentanyl Reduction Pilot. A presenter described a May 1 start date for participating schools, a four-week project timeline for local sites, and said the Mayo Clinic will aggregate local data for a larger national study.

Separately, supervisors granted permission to enroll the county in the Apple Developer Program and Google Android developer terms of service so the county can deploy Navigate360, an anonymous tip-reporting mobile application funded by a Department of Justice STOP School Violence grant. County staff said the app will connect reports to the Sandy Hook Promise Crisis Center for follow-up.

Each item was moved, seconded and approved by the board; the motions were recorded as carrying with 3-0 tallies. The approvals allow Cochise County to continue and expand school-based mental-health services, pilot student-focused fentanyl-reduction work and publish the safety app to major app stores.