Shanghai American School

SAS describes a schoolwide counseling programme that provides a safe, supportive space for students to develop social‑emotional skills and to navigate transitions (elementary page). School communications and staff lists also highlight dedicated counselors and counselling teams across divisions (middle and high school), indicating counsellors work with students on resilience, voice, and wellbeing. The school uses student‑led initiatives and community supports (student ambassadors, PTSA newcomers committee) to help students settle and build peer connections.

SAS publishes staff and stories that include Learning Support teachers and teaching assistants, showing the school has an internal learning‑support provision. The website does not set out a public list of specific types of special educational needs the school will support, nor does it declare on its public pages that it is a specialist SEN institution; detailed eligibility and scope are not described online. Therefore, families seeking exact information about the range or level of SEN provision are advised to contact Admissions or Student Services directly for formal guidance.

SAS states that non‑native English‑speaking applicants (Grade 1 and up) may be given a WIDA Screener/WIDA assessment during admissions to determine EAL support needs, and that spaces for such support are limited. The school's staffing pages and news posts also reference EAL teachers and EAL roles within the division teams. Library and learning resources list materials for English‑language learners (e.g., BrainPOP for English Language Learners), suggesting curriculum‑adjacent resources are available.

SAS describes multiple layers of mental‑wellbeing support: a divisional counselling programme, school counsellors in each division, and curricular/extra‑curricular activities that promote student wellbeing. The school also highlights wellness‑focused professional learning and events (for example, wellness themes in conferences and staff development) and lists athletic trainers and nursing staff who operate as part of health and wellbeing provision on campus. For clinical or specialist mental‑health services the website advises families to contact the school directly for specifics and referral processes.

SAS publishes a Child Protection Policy framework and states that all faculty and staff undertake annual child‑safeguarding training; the school says it adheres to international standards and the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child alongside local law. The site also notes safer‑recruitment practices (background checks and reference checks), a full‑time risk manager, 24/7 campus security, divisional nurses, a dedicated athletic trainer, and medical coverage for school events.