Our Story

The idea for Fondy CARES started after a grant award in 2018-2019, which led us to offer a number of trainings and supports in our middle schools based on mindfulness, mental health, and suicide awareness. In this work, we completed a needs assessment that showed a need for meeting students beyond what a typical school setting can give, a need for community-based therapies.

We then started our pursuit to bring Fondy CARES to light. The journey consisted of researching and connecting with other districts who have mental health supports within the school setting and the Wisconsin Department of Instruction (WDPI). We reached out to fourteen different community-based agencies throughout the area and interviewed them to find our match. The variety of agencies/providers that we partner with have experience working with youth, offer bilingual services, and a variety of payment options to meet our families’ needs.

The inception of Fondy CARES started October 2019 and as of October 2022, all Fond du Lac students have access to Fondy CARES services.

Fondy CARES Roll-out Timeline

2019 – Sabish, STEM Academy, Theisen, and Woodworth

2020 – Evans, Pier, Roberts, and Fond du Lac High School

2021 – Chegwin, Parkside, and Riverside

2022 – Lakeshore, Rosenow, and Waters