Credit: Alison Yin/EdSource
Credit: Alison Yin/EdSourceResponding to a surge in student anxiety and depression — exacerbated by the pandemic — a state commission has called for California schools to move quickly to become “wellness centers” addressing mental and physical health needs among K-12 students and their families.
Through agreements with nonprofits and government health agencies, schools would offer psychological services, basic medical care and other services to help families navigate trauma and other challenges, according to a recently released report by the state Mental Health Services Oversight and Accountability Commission.
“We know the needs are rising. Teachers and administrators and mental health counselors are already strapped and overwhelmed,” said Mara Madrigal-Weiss, vice chair of the commission and director of student wellness, positive school climate and foster and homeless education for the San Diego County Office of Education. “This is a way to provide extra personnel to address this crisis. Ultimately, by virtue of helping families, we can uplift a whole community.”
The report, “Every Young Heart and Mind: Schools as Centers of Student Wellness,” cites a sharp increase in young people’s mental health needs over the past decade or so, due in part to the prevalence of social media, rising rates of poverty that have put stress on families, and an uptick in disasters such as wildfires and floods. The pandemic, which has led to school campus closures and economic hardship for millions in California, has also contributed to students’ feelings of despair.
Because of the pandemic, the state needs to start providing school districts with step-by-step guidance immediately, with changes in place as soon as possible, the report said. The Legislature and Gov. Newsom will have final say on whether and how the recommendations will be implemented.
According to the report, 1 in 6 high school students in California has considered suicide in the past year, and 1 in 3 report feeling chronically sad. LGBT students and low-income Black and Latino students experienced higher rates in both of those categories, and were less likely to receive services intended to help them, the report said.
The commission’s findings follow an October report by State Auditor Elaine Howle on the increasing rate of youth suicide in California, and the need for teachers and other school staff to be trained to recognize depression and suicidal behavior among students. The youth suicide rate in California jumped 15% between 2009 and 2018, according to the audit, while none of the 1,034 districts and county offices of education surveyed said they had adequate mental health professionals on staff.
California has long lagged behind other states in the number of K-12 school counselors, who handle academic tasks like scheduling classes but also issues like campus climate and student mental health. California currently has the fifth-highest student-to-counselor ratio in the country, at 612-to-1, according to the American School Counselors Association. The association recommends a ratio of 250-to-1.
Still, the ratio is better than it was a few years ago. California schools have increased their counseling staffs by 30% in the past six years, according to the California Department of Education, in an effort to address growing mental health needs among young people.
School districts say they would hire more counselors, psychologists and social workers, but are stymied by funding shortfalls. The commission’s report addresses this. The cost of the “wellness centers” would be covered mostly by other agencies, not the schools or districts. The schools would provide space on campus and a staff member, most likely at a district office or County Office of Education, to coordinate the services and agencies, but the cost of the actual services would be paid by local health agencies or nonprofits that bill Medi-Cal, the government’s health insurance plan for low-income residents.
A state panel of experts convened in July had a similar recommendation for schools looking to expand mental health services, urging them to bill Medi-Cal when possible.
State Superintendent of Public Instruction Tony Thurmond has also been studying ways for schools to broaden their mental health services. In June, Thurmond formed a committee of counseling experts to offer guidance for schools on how to help families, teachers and students. Meanwhile, the California Department of Education has provided mental health guidance to schools during the pandemic.
A handful of school districts have already opened wellness centers or are heading in that direction. San Francisco Unified, along with the city’s public health agencies, operates wellness centers at 19 schools, offering short-term counseling, group therapy and other services. Los Angeles Unified runs more than a dozen wellness centers, offering family and individual therapy.
In Sacramento County, the Office of Education recently hired 11 licensed clinicians — licensed family therapists and social workers — to work at school sites, supplementing the school counselors, psychologists and social workers already on campus. The licensed clinicians are trained to handle more serious mental health and behavior problems. They can visit families at their homes, make diagnoses and refer students or their families to other specialists within the county health department — such as medical doctors or addiction counselors.
The goal is to provide a seamless connection between schools and public health agencies, which advocates say is convenient for parents and allows staff to easily follow up on families’ care.
“This really is the future. In so many ways, the health and education systems are doing the same work, this just makes a lot of sense,” said David Gordon, superintendent of the Sacramento County Office of Education and a member of the mental health commission.
In Sacramento County, the clinicians are also trained to help younger children, including those under age 5 who might be enrolled in a district-run preschool. Teaching younger children how to cope with stress could potentially improve their behavior later on, Gordon said.
“What we’re really after is a system that’s preventative rather than remedial,” Gordon said. “If we can reach families early, we think that long-term this could be a game-changer.”
Fresno County started a similar program three years ago. The county Office of Education now has clinicians in 107 schools, helping children and students from infancy through age 22 and their families. Eventually they plan to have clinicians in all 300 Fresno County schools.
Organizers expect chronic absenteeism, suspensions and expulsions to decrease, as well as the number of psychiatric emergencies, such as threats of suicide, on campuses.
“We’re looking closely at the data, but so far the success stories have been amazing,” said Trina Frazier, chief student services officer for the Fresno County Office of Education. “Our hope is that if we can teach students to build their resiliency and coping skills, it could impact their whole lives.”
Loretta Whitson, executive director of the California Association of School Counselors, said the commission’s findings are a good start, but further research is needed on issues like accountability, best practices and a survey of what programs are already in place.
She also noted that California had a similar system until the early 2010s. Healthy Start was a state-funded program at school sites offering physical and mental health services to low-income K-12 students and their families. The program was phased out when the state transitioned to local-control funding for schools, although a handful of districts maintained their programs even after state support ended.
“These ideas are not new,” Whitson said. “We’ve known for a long time that these comprehensive health and mental health services are necessary. It’s just a question of finding a system that works, and is sustainable.”
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James Wogan LCSW 2 years ago2 years ago
Several school districts in the Bay Area have model School Wellness Centers. Acalanes, Berkeley, Mt. Diablo Unified, Redwood HS (Marin), Richmond, and San Francisco Unified. School Social Workers and Wellness Coordinators manage referrals and outreach to students from diverse backgrounds. Universities and partnership agencies bring much needed support to students. Thank you for shining a light on School Wellness Centers.
Sherif Zaher 2 years ago2 years ago
As the founder and clinical director at the Wellness Initiative Foundation I would like to extend our services to help local schools interested in providing mental health services to their students. My contact details are available on our webpage http://www.wellnessmission.org
J. Renison 2 years ago2 years ago
Our team started a very unique wellness program at our San Diego County comprehensive high school. It was created by teachers in 2015, first as a wellness class that every freshman takes. The following year, we created The Wellness Center to help ease the caseload for counselors, social workers, and school psychs. It is now its own school-wide program. The class is designed to help students improve their self-awareness and relationship skills through classroom instruction, … Read More
Our team started a very unique wellness program at our San Diego County comprehensive high school. It was created by teachers in 2015, first as a wellness class that every freshman takes. The following year, we created The Wellness Center to help ease the caseload for counselors, social workers, and school psychs. It is now its own school-wide program.
The class is designed to help students improve their self-awareness and relationship skills through classroom instruction, outreach (“coaching”), and restorative practices. The center focuses on helping students manage their emotions and impulsivity, increase their empathy and improve their ability to make responsible decisions. Students can come to us in the center first, where we can support them with their mild SE issues. More serious issued are sent to the counselors or social workers. We are funded through the XQ grant this year, but we have been funded in the past by the district.
I am so happy to know there is state support in this! Finally!
Frank Sterle Jr. 2 years ago2 years ago
A 2007 study (“The Science of Early Childhood Development”) found and reported that: “The future of any society depends on its ability to foster the health and well-being of the next generation. Stated simply, today’s children will become tomorrow’s citizens, workers, and parents. When we invest wisely in children and families, the next generation will pay that back through a lifetime of productivity and responsible citizenship. When we fail to provide children with what they need … Read More
A 2007 study (“The Science of Early Childhood Development”) found and reported that:
“The future of any society depends on its ability to foster the health and well-being of the next generation. Stated simply, today’s children will become tomorrow’s citizens, workers, and parents. When we invest wisely in children and families, the next generation will pay that back through a lifetime of productivity and responsible citizenship. When we fail to provide children with what they need to build a strong foundation for healthy and productive lives, we put our future prosperity and security at risk …
All aspects of adult human capital, from work force skills to cooperative and lawful behavior, build on capacities that are developed during childhood, beginning at birth … The basic principles of neuroscience and the process of human skill formation indicate that early intervention for the most vulnerable children will generate the greatest payback.”
While I appreciate the study’s initiative, it’s still for me a disappointing revelation as to our collective humanity when the report’s author feels compelled to repeatedly refer to living, breathing and often enough suffering human beings as a well-returning ‘investment’ and ‘human capital’ in an attempt to convince money-minded society that it’s in our own best fiscal interest to fund early-life programs that result in lowered incidence of unhealthy, dysfunctional child development.
Ian Fletcher 2 years ago2 years ago
This is exactly what I was looking for!
Richard Knecht 2 years ago2 years ago
Thanks for publishing and drawing attention to the needs and opportunities. The state has actually done much in the last year, courtesy AB 2083, to install the type of local partnerships which are required to effectively design and deliver School-based/community based system of care as you recommend. See link here to the state’s toolkit for Children’s System of Care.
https://www.chhs.ca.gov/home/system-of-care/
el 2 years ago2 years ago
I think creating and staffing these services at school sites would be a tremendous benefit. Kids and families need access to services. The school sites have significant advantages over medical offices in town, not least of which is the challenge of getting kids transported during the day and all the class that they miss for those transportation logistics. It also enables providers to observe more directly the environment where the student lives day to day. However, … Read More
I think creating and staffing these services at school sites would be a tremendous benefit. Kids and families need access to services. The school sites have significant advantages over medical offices in town, not least of which is the challenge of getting kids transported during the day and all the class that they miss for those transportation logistics. It also enables providers to observe more directly the environment where the student lives day to day.
However, there’s been a glaring assumption whenever it comes up, and in this article too:
“but the cost of the actual services would be paid by local health agencies or nonprofits that bill Medi-Cal, the government’s health insurance plan for low-income residents.”
The idea that only low-income students need these services, or that higher income students are somehow being served. Neither is true and both assumptions are hurting kids and families.
There are kids in every financial cohort not getting the services they need due to some combination of cost, access, stigma, and logistics. In my county, there are very few providers of children’s mental health services outside of the Medi-Cal program.
Set up providers at and near schools. Fund their services for any and every child just as we fund their educations. Don’t make assumptions about who needs those services nor restrict students from them based on parental income.
Christopher Edley 2 years ago2 years ago
These developments are great, but will not be as widespread and sustainable as one should hope. That risk is likely, as usual, to be greatest in the poorest communities—which already have insufficient wellness services. More generally, student wellness should not depend on volunteerism or this year's roster of school and health officials. Legislation and regulations are necessary. Moreover, the finding the resources cannot be added to the crushing burdens already on school budgets and … Read More
These developments are great, but will not be as widespread and sustainable as one should hope. That risk is likely, as usual, to be greatest in the poorest communities—which already have insufficient wellness services.
More generally, student wellness should not depend on volunteerism or this year’s roster of school and health officials. Legislation and regulations are necessary. Moreover, the finding the resources cannot be added to the crushing burdens already on school budgets and educators.
Given the social determinants of student success, the needed supports and interventions must be baked into the missions and budgets of agencies outside of the education system. That’s the only way to achieve systemic whole child equity. — Christopher Edley, U.C. Berkeley Law School and the Opportunity Institute.
Rachel 2 years ago2 years ago
Nah. Let’s blow it all on weeks of pointless standardized testing instead. That way we can prove over and over who probably doesn’t have glasses or meals or healthcare or internet or books …