Building Belonging Mini-Grants

Building Belonging Mini-Grants is sponsored by Wisconsin Office of Children's Mental Health (OCMH). Since 2024, the Wisconsin Office of Children's Mental Health (OCMH) has provided mini-grants to Wisconsin middle and high schools to build belonging and social connection among students. Student leaders propose and implement ideas.

While primarily for schools, nonprofits focused on youth mental health could explore partnerships with eligible schools.

Building Belonging Mini-Grants Skip Navigation Links OCMH > Building Belonging Mini-Grants Building Belonging Mini-Grants ​​​​​​​​​​Since 2024, the Wisconsin Office of Children's Mental Health (OCMH) has provided 40 mini-grants to Wisconsin middle and high schools to build belonging and social connection among students.

Awarded between $500 to $1,000, student leaders proposed an idea and were tasked with leading the implementation of their plan. We have been impressed by what school organizations have been able to do with these The most common mini-grant activities included special events, wellness days, murals, and purchasing games for lunch time. Read below for a full list of creative approaches - all driven by students!

We encourage other organizations and funding sources to consider providing similar mini-grant opportunities to schools! We asked advisors of student-led mental wellness programs what could make their programs more successful, and 60% of them said “ provide mini-grant opportunities . ” ​It's clear that even a small amount of money can make a big difference in student belonging!

We'd be happy to share our process – email OCMH@wisconsin. gov . ​ ​​​​ ​​ ​Mini-Grant Funds To Host Special Events​​​ ​ Kohler High School (2024) Health America Student Ambassadors collaborated with community partners to host a Wellness Day for staff and students.

Each student participated in three different wellness activities including workout classes, cycling, yoga, meditation, crafting, and creating lotion with essential oils. ​ ​ Freedom High School (2025/26 School Year) of Strength Peer Leaders hosted a half-day event where students selected fun activities led by teachers and staff to participate in. Activities included yoga, crafts, board games, and baking.

​ ​​​ Green Lake High School (2025/26 School Year) Student Council hosted a school-wide trip to a local trampoline/sports park that provided an opportunity for students to connect and have fun ​​ Howards Grove High School (2025/26 School Year)​ Career and Community Leaders of America hosted a wellness half-day where students selected activities to participate in including sports, hot cocoa and conversation, Legos, crocheting, puzzles, board games, self-defense, yoga, floral arrangements, homemade products, crafts, and service projects.

​ ​ Vel Phillips Memorial High School, Madison (2025/26 School Year) Unidos coordinated a Latin Festival and Dance that celebrated culture and educated students on their culture and style of dance. ​ ​ Abbotsford (Spring 2026) ​ NAMI Raise Your Voice Club hosted a pizza and movie party plus created and distributed wellness bags with unique treats. In the Fall of 2026, the middle school will hold a back-to-school gathering ​.

​ ​ North Crawford Middle and High Schools (Spring 2026) of Strength Peer Leaders in both the middle and high school planned field trips to a jump park to build connection and relationships. ​ ​​ North Star Academy, Cameron (Spring 2026) Your Voice Club held an end-of-school picnic with food and drawings for school apparel. Each student received a “thinking of you” packet so they know they will be thought of during the summer.

​ ​ Tomahawk School District (Spring 2026) Your Voice Club held a Color Run that was open to the community to extend their mental health message, partnering with a local radio station DJ for music. ​ ​ Westosha Central High School (Spring 2026) Your Voice Club held a Color Run that incl​uded mental health vendors, food truck, balloon arch, honor beads, and family-fun activities.

​ ​ Sheboygan Lutheran High School (Spring 2026)​​ Crusader Leadership Cohort will do a one-day retreat during Summer 2026 to build bonds and learn their responsibilities as leader/captains for the ​ Marshfield Columbus Catholic High School (Spring 2026) Marshfield Columbus Leadership Alliance and Hope Squad will host a vo​lleyball game in Fall 2026 focused on mental health.

​ ​ Wisconsin Dells High School (Spring 2026) Green Bandana Club will hold a paint night event in Fall 2026 for ​ Wisconsin Lutheran High School (Spring 2026) ​ Hope Squad will hold a Park & Pa​rty event in Fall 2026 during the first week of school. It will include games and school staff​ grilling food. ​​​ ​Mini-Grant Funds To Support Consistent Programming & Activities ​ St.

Mary Catholic High School, Neenah (2024) hosted all-school wellness activity weeks and sponsored a QPR suicide prevention training for REDgen Peer Leaders. ​ ​ Arcadia High School (2025/26 School Year) Leadership, Eating Healthy, Active, and Determination (LEAD) Team held wellness days at the end of each trimester that provided opportunities for students to connect and interact.

Activities included sports, recreation, crafts, cultural food, Legos, trivia, and board games. ​ ​ Bay Port High School, Green Bay (2025/26 School Year)​ ​ A new school club, Eating Disorders Support and Awareness, hosted a positive message campaign focused on self-confidence.

​ ​ Bay Port High School, Green Bay (2025/26 School Year) of Strength purchased Polaroid cameras with film for students to take photos of themselves and people they are connected to and post on a wall at ​ Chequamegon High School (2025/26 School Year)​ ​ Sources of Strength brought the challenge of truancy to the student population to design real, sustainable solutions.

Working in small groups, students brainstormed and presented ideas on how to reduce truancy at school, with the opportunity to use mini-grant dollars to implement their solution. ​ ​ Dr. Rosa Minoka-Hill School, Green Bay (2025/26 School Year) DBT Quilt Club learned how to make quilts , and each student made a quilt square to be combined into one quilt.

The quilt was shown at an event allowing the students to display their accomplishments. ​ Onalaska High School (2025-26 School Year) time sets aside 20 minutes once a month where teachers/staff lead an activity and are able to connect with teachers and other students they may not otherwise know. Activities include Lego building, cooking, drawing, sports, book club, and rock painting.

​ ​ Tenor High School, Milwaukee (2025/26 School Year) Media Club purchased a new camera to capture memorable moments of students and produce a documentary on connection. ​ ​ McFarland High School (Spring 2026)​ Squad held Hope Week and focused on a different activity each day.

Topics included suicide prevention, school-wide advisory lesson, wellness activities, rock painting, mental health awareness ribbons, a scavenger hunt with mental health facts, distributing candy bags with mental health messages, and having mental health facts on building monitors.

​ ​ Neenah Middle School (Spring 2026) of Strength coordinated a “clip” positive message campaign where each student received a clip to clip onto to another student. Sources of Strength Peer Leaders went into classrooms to introduce the school-wide activity. ​ ​ Sun Prairie East High School (Spring 2026) Green Bandana Club coordinated tables for Mental Health Month during lunch and “What I Need” time.

Topics included make your own mental health sensory self-care kits, banners where kids wrote positive messages, therapy ​ Sun Prairie East High School (Spring 2026) New Student Welcome Group holds monthly meetings for new students so they feel they belong and can get connected to activities, information, and DBT Quilting Club from Dr. Rosa Minoka-Hill High School Tenor High School Media Club ​​​ ​​​ ​​ ​Mini-Grant Funds to Create Murals & Improve Spaces ​ Alexander Hamilton High School, Milwaukee (2024)​​ Squad worked with other school groups (Black Student Union, National Honors Society, Hamilton Gay Straight Alliance) to create a mural using positive words to increase belonging at school.

​ ​ ​ Pardeeville High School (2024) lost in a tragic car accident and helping students process their grief, Sources of Strength updated the locker room, created memorial corn hole boards, purchased patches for softball uniforms, and planted a tree next to the softball field in the student’s memory.

​ ​ Palmyra-Eagle High School (2024) Squad established a dedicated " Chill Zone ,” a new space to provide students an area to take a break, decompress, and engage in quiet conversations ​ Ashwaubenon High School (2025/26 School Year) increase the visibility of Tribal students, Title VI First Nations created a mural representative of the rich cultural heritage of Indigenous tribes in the school.

​ ​ ​ Evansville High School (2025/26 School Year) of Strength Peer Leaders created a “better together” mural . ​ ​ ​ New Auburn High School (2025/26 School Year) Raise Your Voice Club created a student-led mural to connect students with their community . ​ ​ Shawano High School (2025/26 School Year) Culture Club created a mural in a Native motif that says “welcome” in 16 languages .

It shows young Native people that their culture and language matter and are important. ​ ​ DC Everest IDEA School (Spring 2026) Your Voice Club created a separate quiet space in their open concept facility for students to be calm, comfortable, and meet with their counselors. ​ ​ Oshkosh West High School (Spring 2026) – Wildcat Way purchased cell phone caddies for study halls to support the school’s bell-to-bell cell phone policy.

​ Oconto High School Games​ ​​​ ​ ​Mini-Grant Funds for Games & Connection Activities ​ ​ Green Bay East High School (2024) of Strength purchased outdoor games for students to play during lunch periods. Board games were bought to refresh and expand the library’s game ​ Preble High School, Green Bay (2024) of Strength purchased board games for students to play during their lunch and a large cabinet for game storage.

​ ​ Black River Falls Middle School (Spring 2026) Your Voice Club purchased games for students including frisbees, basketballs, footballs, shirts for team identification, jump rope, nets, hula hoops, and a pump to inflate items and a cart to store the items. ​ ​ Oconto High School (Spring 2026) Devils on a Mission purchased games for students and a cart for storage.

Games include Backgammon, Blank Slate, Corn Hole, Crazy 8, Go Fish, Guess in 10, Monopoly, Uno, Twister, cards, volleyball, frisbee, and football. ​ If you have difficulty accessing our materials, or using our website, please let us know by emailing OCMH@wi. gov​ .

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