Marshfield Clinic is teaming up with local schools on two programs aimed at student well-being. One is a screening tool for teachers, and the other is a group program that teaches practical skills for handling emotional, social and behavioral challenges.
The screening tool, called b.e.s.t. Universal Screening, takes about three minutes per student. It was designed by longtime Wisconsin school psychologist Eric P. Hartwig and is used mainly in elementary schools. Teachers use it to spot behavior that may be getting in the way of learning, track progress over time and find classroom supports that can help.
Clinic pediatric psychology specialist Kelsie Offenwanger said the screening is not a diagnosis. She described it as a way to flag which students could use a little extra help, and to follow whether they are making progress when the screening is repeated at the start, middle and end of the school year.
The second program, Life Tools, runs for eight weeks, with one-hour sessions held outside regular school hours. School counselors, school social workers or other credentialed professionals lead the groups, and parents and caregivers are also involved. Each week introduces a different skill, which students then practice together and are encouraged to use at school and at home.
For the 2025-26 school year, 37 schools received the screening platform and 30 schools received Life Tools. The programs also include technical support, training, consultation and ongoing assistance for schools. In the 2024-25 school year, Life Tools served 285 students through 59 group sessions.
The work goes back more than a decade. Since 2013, Marshfield Clinic has supported screening across 89 school districts, with more than 600,000 screenings completed and 12,000 educators and staff engaged. The clinic's community relations staff said the programs reflect a long-running partnership with school districts, and counselors involved said the groups can help students who are not in many other activities connect with peers.
