Get Stronger Mental Health Support and Safety in Public Schools

Many children in public schools do not have adequate mental health services. Most schools have school counselors, but many of these counselors are not even trauma informed. Schools need to have more competent mental health professionals like psychologists, or just better train their counselors. Students deserve the best care when it comes to all aspect of their health, but mental health is very often neglected.

In the recent years, many mass shootings have occurred in the U.S. that have mostly been in public schools. The shooters have often been current and former students. Many people argue that these kids are mentally ill and have not received the proper treatments while attending school and things like bullying and unfair treatment have triggered their mental breakdowns that caused the shootings.

Congress entered a bill called, S.2513 - School Safety and Mental Health Services Improvement Act of 2018 which aims to improve school safety and mental health services. This bill would be a great addition to public schools for a multitude of reasons. For instance, every child would be receive free mental health care that would include programs such as violence prevention, mental health awareness, threat de-escalation methods, and positive behavioral interventions and supports, and supporting bullying and harassment prevention programs that all teachers and staff will be trained in (Lamar, 2018).

Also, the bill suggests to make structural changes in public schools to promote a safer environment. These would include double entry systems, hardened entrances which would have metal detectors, security glass, alarm systems, emergency communication systems, perimeter fencing, and many more (Lamar, 2018).

The National Association of Social Workers states that social workers are responsible to challenge social injustices (NASW, 2017). This federal bill acknowledges this ethical principle because children that attend public schools might not be able to afford the cost of professional mental health care, so putting this in the schools for free would benefit the children immensely. This bill would ensure access to services and equal opportunities for all children and adolescents in public schools as the code of ethics states (NASW,2017).

This bill is important for the children and youth in our country to receive the mental health care that they need as well as the protection and safety while attending school that most people over look. Times are changing, and we need to change with it and advocate for the future of our society! Thank you for considering this petition!