Article: R14CC Quick Chats with Jocelyn Franke, MPAff
Uncover the personalities behind Region 14 Comprehensive Center! Join us for bite-sized glimpses into our experts' lives—from their passions to professional insights. Meet the diverse minds shaping education in Arkansas, Louisiana, and Texas, and see what fuels their drive for positive change.
Meet Jocelyn Franke
Jocelyn Franke is a former teacher with a keen understanding of the challenges students and faculty face in accessing mental health resources. As the School and Community Health Lead at the Region 14 Comprehensive Center, Jocelyn collaborates with state clients to establish crucial school-based mental health supports to identify gaps in services and provide comprehensive well-being support in schools and communities.
Jocelyn Franke talks with colleague Chelsea Sorensen and R14CC advisory board member Dr. Jennifer Chidsey
What book has made the biggest impact on you?
Picking just one is so hard! I love reading and consume what some might classify as a ridiculous number of books. I’ll share two. I read Man’s Search for Meaning by Victor E. Frankl in high school, and it blew me away. There's a remarkable strength in overcoming challenging situations born from the darkest sides of human nature and seeking purpose in the experience. This book prompted my lifelong interest in psychology and the ways we as humans work to persevere through trauma and suffering.
One of my favorite fiction books is called A Man Called Ove by Fredrick Backman. It’s a wonderful story of how the people we meet in life can have such a large impact on us, often without realizing it. I’m a big fan of stories where characters find family, friends, and community they didn’t have before. But if you read it, have tissues handy. I have yet to meet someone who didn’t tear up at some point during the book.
What is a resource that could help readers understand the impact of well-designed mental health supports in education?
I love the School Mental Health Practice Guide and Toolkit the Texas Education Agency released in 2021. We helped them with the design, but their team of subject matter experts created engaging comprehensive content that does an excellent job of the explaining the “why” as well as the “how,” of implementing well-designed mental health supports in education.
Jocelyn Franke gives a presentation to advisory board members.
What is one app or tool you cannot live without in your work?
It took me a long time to get on board, but I now recognize that Smartsheet for the amazing tool that it is. The ability to collaborate, organize project information, and create customized dashboards has proven Smartsheet as an invaluable tool that has noticeably improve project processes. I use it in all my project work now.
How can technical assistance and capacity building support student’s mental health?
There are so many factors that influence student mental and behavioral health and very few of them are contained within the walls of a classroom. Environment, personal history, genetics, brain chemistry, and hormones are just a few of the variables that can impact an individual student’s mental health. There isn’t a magic solution, or one size fits all approach that can address all of these at once. The key is building effective systems that provide wraparound supports, with partnerships between families, schools, and communities as the foundation. Many organizations have the pieces, but they don’t quite have the complete system in place. Technical assistance and capacity building support is the opportunity to help build connections and ensure students are supported wherever they are in their journey.
Learn more about Jocelyn's professional background and connect with her on LinkedIn!