Nonprofits, Closegap and Koko, partner to scale evidence-based interventions in K-12 schools

LOS ANGELES, Dec. 15, 2025 /PRNewswire/ -- Closegap, the comprehensive youth mental health platform used in K-12 districts nationwide with more than 9 million check-ins to date, today announced a strategic partnership with Koko, a global leader in digital single-session interventions (SSIs). The partnership integrates Koko's clinical-grade, peer-reviewed support tools directly into Closegap's daily check-ins, allowing schools to instantly respond from detecting a student need to providing an evidence-based intervention.

Connect students with support that is fast, dignified, and backed by serious evidence.

Through this integration, Closegap transforms real-time student data into immediate action. Educators using the platform can now recommend Koko's research-backed SSIs — including targeted modules on body neutrality, self-harm, and safety planning — as a direct response to specific struggles flagged during a student's daily check-in.

Meeting students where they are — online and in school

Koko's platform has reached more than 6 million people in 199 countries and has been evaluated in over nine peer-reviewed publications. While Koko traditionally operates on major social platforms to detect high-risk content and route users to support, this partnership brings that same rapid-response capability into the school day.

"Young people are asking for help in two main places: in school and online," said Rachel Miller, Founder & CEO of Closegap. "Closegap exists to help schools capture and respond to those signals; Koko exists to help online platforms do the same. Integrating our systems helps educators close the loop by using real-time data to connect students with support that is fast, dignified, and backed by serious evidence."

More care in less time

Single-session interventions are brief, structured experiences that only take 5 to 10 minutes, designed to build a specific skill in a single sitting. Implementation and research for online SSIs were pioneered by Dr. Jessica L. Schleider, leader of the Lab for Scalable Mental Health at Northwestern University, with whom Koko works closely.

Impact data from Koko reports that after topic-specific modules, approximately 70% of users report increased hopefulness and roughly 50% report improved body impact

"Counselors are drowning in need and starved for time," said Jared B. Fries, Director of Partnerships at Closegap. "A 10-minute, evidence-backed intervention that students actually finish is gold. It means a student can check in on Closegap, flag a struggle with body image, and immediately receive a brief, targeted tool that helps them regulate, without waiting days for a referral."

What the integration delivers for schools

When a student reports distress via Closegap, the platform's triage system will now enable educators to deploy specific Koko SSIs, including:

• Body Neutrality: Helping students move from body-shame spirals toward neutral, sustainable self-perception.
• Self-Harm: Guiding students through evidence-based strategies to manage self-harm urges and find healthier ways to cope.
• Safety Planning: Creating a concrete, personalized safety plan to help students stay safe when suicidal thoughts or urges arise, by ensuring trusted adults stay involved.

"For districts, this partnership checks three big boxes," Fries added. "It's grounded in independent research, it fits inside tight school schedules, and it complements Tier 2 and 3 counseling by handling immediate, urgent needs.

A model for collaborative impact

With the U.S. short nearly 77,000 school counselors, Miller and Koko co-founder Rob Morris agree that cross-sector collaboration is the only way to close the gap between rising youth mental health needs and limited staff capacity.

"The mental health of students is complex and nuanced," said Rob Morris, Co-founder of Koko. "Students deserve options. Partnerships like this give us a better chance at providing support that resonates when and where they need it."

The Koko SSIs are now available to Closegap partner schools for the 2025–26 school year.

About Closegap

Closegap is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit on a mission to improve youth mental health by transforming the way kids are cared for in school. Our comprehensive mental health check-ins and intervention library help PK-12 students build key social-emotional skills while equipping schools with data for real-time monitoring and intervention. Closegap is trusted by thousands of schools across the U.S. Closegap Core is free for schools, with premium solutions available for district-wide impact tracking.

Learn more at closegap.org.

About Koko

Koko is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit dedicated to ending the youth mental health crisis by reaching young people where they already are — online. Koko provides free, evidence-based digital mental health support directly on social and messaging platforms young people use every day. Koko's tools have reached more than 6 million users and have been validated by three randomized controlled trials.

Learn more at kokocares.org.

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SOURCE Closegap