Your Prevention & Wellness Designers evaluate building level needs, create and align programming with district rocks, analyze program effectiveness, build capacity of staff, train staff in a variety of mental health topics, and are a front line of support for students in crisis. They work in collaboration with building counselors, administrators, intervention specialists, and contracted clinicians to build a tiered system of intervention to increase access to care. In addition, the Mental Wellness Coordinators assist building teams in developing plans for transitioning students back from clinical care to help ensure a successful reintegration within the school environment.

District Prevention & Wellness Supervisor 

Nicole Pfirman, M.Ed., OTR/L- Nicole currently serves as the District Mental Wellness Supervisor. Nicole has been at Mason City Schools for the past 17 years. She started her career in outpatient psychiatry and adult rehabilitation working both in the hospital and prison setting. Nicole worked on an interdisciplinary team as a therapist to help teens and adults who had been incarcerated reintegrate into the community setting. After spending time working with adults, Nicole decided to focus and begin to specialize in working with students with severe behavioral disorders as a pediatric occupational therapist both in outpatient and in the school based setting. At Mason City Schools, Nicole worked in the SCSF environment for 13 years supporting the sensory and behavioral needs of students with severe to profound autism. During this work she designed and implemented a Snozelen multi-sensory environment as a proactive way to de-escalate behaviors. It was during this time that Nicole began to see a need for behavioral services and support to address the increasing mental wellness needs in young children. After implementing several interventions and programs, Nicole moved into the role of District Behavior Coach, working with teams to develop systems of support and individualized behavior plans to address the behavioral and mental health students across grades K-12. Nicole then moved into the role of Special Education Behavior Supervisor providing supervision to special education and support staff within the district. In 2018 Nicole wrote a proposal for a Mental Wellness team at Mason City Schools. The Board of Education accepted the proposal and the Mental Wellness team was implemented during the 2019-2020 school year. The team currently consists of 3 mental wellness coordinators, 21 school counselors, 1 resource coordinator, 10 clinical mental health therapists, and 1 psychiatric nurse practitioner. 

Mason Early Childhood Center Prevention & Wellness Designer

Laura Martin, M.Ed.- Laura has a Bachelors of Science, K-12 certification serving students with moderate-intensive special education needs and a Masters of Education specializing in birth through year 8 early child intervention. Laura has worked for the Mason City School district for 17 years. She began as a preschool intervention specialist. Laura then worked on a multidisciplinary team to design and implement a state of the art program for students with severe to profound Autism that became the SCSF model across the district. During that time, Laura regularly worked with students with significant behavior and mental health concerns who required a comprehensive and multidisciplinary approach. Laura served as a support to families in navigating both in school and out of school support services. Laura has been a support to students, staff, and families in her knowledge and understanding of behavioral de-escalation and crisis intervention. She is a member of the behavior response team and the district crisis team to support students throughout the district who have additional behavioral and mental health needs. Laura’s experience includes program design for students with behavior dysregulation, verbal and non-verbal behavioral de-escalation, community resource support and instruction in social-emotional development.

Mason Elementary and Mason Intermediate Prevention & Wellness Designer

Breanna Lynch, MOT, OTR/L- Breanna graduated from Xavier University with a Masters in Occupational Therapy.  She is a Nationally Board Certified occupational therapist in the state of Ohio. She began her career as an outpatient pediatric occupational therapist, specializing in sensory integration and trauma-informed interventions. She spent time working one on one with clients, as well as being a part of a multidisciplinary clinical team providing therapy services for children and their families who have experienced complex trauma. All of Breanna’s clients had clinical diagnoses related to their mental/behavioral health for which families sought therapeutic services to provide caregiver coaching, tools and strategies, and connections to other professionals and/or resources, among other goal-oriented, occupation-based interventions. She continues to provide ongoing professional development opportunities about occupational therapists' role in mental health and trauma-informed practices with the American Occupational Therapy Association, Ohio Occupational Therapy Association, and Xavier University’s Department of Occupational Therapy through academic research and presentations. 

Mason Middle School Prevention & Wellness Designer

Dawn McCorkle has spent her career working with students and families across the life span in a variety of mental health capacities. She started her work in mental health as an Adult Mental Health Case Manager with Valley Mental Health Services.  Her role was to provide Mental Health Case Management for clients and to coordinate medical care, wrap around supports, and community resources. Dawn then spent time working for Butler County Children Services as a caseworker making referrals for community resources to support families and children in their homes and responding to crisis situations when needed. Dawn was then promoted to an adoption specialist and worked to complete foster care and adoption home studies for adults that wanted to provide foster and adoptive homes. After leaving children’s services, Dawn moved into a role with Butler County Education Services Center working with the Success Program.  As part of the success program, Dawn worked to coordinate services for parents and children within the school district and the community to eliminate barriers to poverty and increase academic engagement. Dawn was tapped to come to Mason in August of 2020 to provide support to our students and families across the district. She works in collaboration with our mental wellness and building teams to ensure appropriate wrap around services and referrals are in place to increase academic and community engagement.

Mason High School Prevention & Wellness Designer

Molly Schmidt, LSW- Molly has been serving students and families mental health needs as a School Social Worker for the past six years. Molly received her Master's of Art in Social Work from Miami University. Molly started her field experience as a social worker in a school-based therapy program in Preble County schools. While there, Molly provided individual and group therapy to elementary, middle, and high school students. Molly worked as a school case manager for low-income families for three years while earning her Ohio License in Social Work (LSW). Molly then came to Mason City Schools and served in the role of District Resource Coordinator, where she helped students, staff, and families navigate the various barriers to mental health treatment and basic daily needs. Molly worked with our agency partners to implement a weekend food program and create a holiday help program with the help of our partners at Joshua's Place. Molly then transitioned in the 2020-2021 into her current position as the Mason High School Mental Wellness Coordinator. In this position, Molly has continued to build relationships with students and staff supporting a variety of mental health concerns. Molly works with our district crisis team to provide support to families both in school and in the home to ensure that basic needs are met and that wrap around mental health services are in place as needed.