Federal grant could help Wake have mental health providers available at all 200 schools
A new federal grant will provide the Wake County school system with up to $14.1 million to expand mental health services at schools, such as providing more therapy to students.
Wake County’s is among 23 grants recently awarded by the U.S. Department of Education to support school-based mental health programs. Wake school leaders say the new grant will help them with their goal of trying to have a mental health provider available at all 200 schools by the end of the 2025-26 school year.
“Supporting student mental health is essential to our mission of helping every child reach their full potential,” says Michele Woodson, Wake’s assistant superintendent for student support services, said in a news release. “This grant will allow us to build on our ongoing efforts to make sure all students have ready access to counseling and other services that will help them thrive inside and outside of the classroom.”
Wake Superintendent Robert Taylor said at this week’s school board meeting that the district should be proud to have received the grant. He noted that Wake was the only North Carolina recipient.
Mental health concerns among students
The grant comes at a time of mounting concerns about mental health challenges faced by youth people.
Statewide results from the 2023 North Carolina Youth Behavior Risk Survey showed:
▪ 39% of high school students reported feeling sad or hopeless.
▪ 18% of high school students seriously considered suicide.
▪ 37% of gay, lesbian or bisexual high school students seriously considered suicide in the past year. That’s compared to 13% for heterosexual students.
▪ 16% of high school students made a plan for a suicide attempt during the past 12 months.
▪ 10% of high school students attempted suicide in the past 12 months.
The numbers are better than the 2021 survey but are still a source of concern.
Grant will pay for 20 new therapists
Amid the concerns about student mental health, Wake County created a school-based mental health pilot program to provide services directly to students.
Sixty-one schools now offer mental health services, both in-person counseling and teletherapy. The new grant will help Wake expand its efforts by allowing it to create 27 new positions over the next five years.
The new positions are:
▪ Twenty therapists to provide direct services to students;
▪ Three instructional assistants to support students anywhere in the district who are experiencing acute mental health crises;
▪ Two school social worker positions to support operations of the expanded school-based mental health program;
▪ One clinical supervisor to oversee therapists and clinical programs;
▪ One program manager for all mental health services.
Wake says the grant will also fund increased training for licensed mental health staff and for those pursuing a license.. It will also pay for a records management system to track all services related to the grant.
Grant ‘dangerous’ or ‘excellent news’?
The terms for the grant call for it to be paid out over five years. Wake would get $2.8 million in the first year.
But some conservative critics are urging the incoming Trump administration to eliminate the grant. Groups such as Moms for Liberty says school-based clinics are “dangerous” because they allow schools to provide services to students without the knowledge of parents.
“There is nothing better for self esteem and mental health than achieving excellence!!” Michele Morrow posted Tuesday on X, previously called Twitter. “Time to focus on discipline, perseverance, and scholastics, WCPSS!
“Raise the bar of expectation and our students will rise to the occasion STOP using our children for social, political and pharmaceutical experiments! School is for scholastics, not healthcare!”
Morrow unsuccessfully ran for a seat on the Wake school board in 2022. More recently, she lost in the race for state superintendent of public instruction.
But Chris Rice, a school psychologist in Wake County, said the grant is “excellent news.”
“I’m sure no MAGA/conservative will be upset about providing mental and behavioral health supports to students (since they always scream they’re worried about the students MH) ... Right?” Rice posted Tuesday on X.
This story was originally published November 29, 2024 at 12:50 PM.
