Clinical Psychology Review, Vol. 19, No. 2, pp. 239–253, 1999 Copyright © 1999 Elsevier Science Ltd Printed in the USA. All rights reserved 0272-7358/99/$–see front matter PII S0272-7358(98)00072-5 239 TOWARD COLLABORATION IN THE GROWING EDUCATION–MENTAL HEALTH INTERFACE Robyn P. Waxman and Mark D. Weist University of Maryland School of Medicine David M. Benson Baltimore City Public Schools ABSTRACT. Expanded school mental health (ESMH) programs involve the provision of com- prehensive mental health services for youth in schools, including assessment, intervention, pre- vention, and consultation. Related to increased awareness of the benefits of these programs, and growing disenchantment with traditional forms of mental health service delivery for children, ESMH programs are growing rapidly in the United States. Coinciding with the growth of these programs is a developing interface between and among education and mental health profession- als in schools. In this interface, there is an increasing need for real collaboration; however, associ- ated with differences in professional training, language, and expectations, and related to “turf,” such collaboration is often an elusive prospect. In this article, we review historical trends that pro- vide background to the growing education–mental health interface in schools. We discuss ten- sions that arise between staff of various disciplines when ESMH programs are developed, and provide recommendations on strategies to develop truly collaborative approaches to the provision of comprehensive mental health services in schools. © 1999 Elsevier Science Ltd AS HIGHLIGHTED IN articles in this Special Issue, there is a significant national movement underway to develop expanded school mental health (ESMH) programs for youth. Going beyond services that are traditionally provided in schools, ESMH programs offer comprehensive assessment and treatment services for youth in both special and regular education. Assessment services in many cases include focused mental health evaluation, diagnostic interviewing, classroom behavioral observation, Correspondence should be addressed to Mark D. Weist, Center for School Mental Health Assis- tance, Department of Psychiatry, University of Maryland, Baltimore, MD 21201. E-mail: mweist@ umpsy.ab.umd.edu