LOS ANGELES (KNX) — Los Angeles County officials have announced a goal to survey students in 80 districts to learn more about their mental health needs to learn more about what resources and support may be needed.
County Supervisor Hilda Solis co-authored the motion with Supervisor Kathryn Barger.
“Each year, the need for effective student and youth mental health support continues to grow, with one in six youth reporting experiencing a mental health disorder each year,” Solis said in a statement. “Unfortunately, half have reported not receiving any kind of treatment in recent history.”
Solis and Barger recommend that the County coordinate American Rescue Plan and State resources allotted for K-12 schools to implement the needed health services.
“Through the American Rescue Plan, over $122 billion was appropriated for K-12 schools to safely re-open and to address the many impacts of COVID-19 on education,” Solis said in a statement. “This includes strategies to meet the social, emotional, and mental health needs of students, as well as to hire additional personnel, such as nurses or mental health professionals, to keep schools safe and healthy.
In addition to ARP funds, $25 million of the state’s 2021-2022 budget package is set to provide funding to develop mental health and wellness resources and training for educators of K-12 students.
“The mental health of our youth must be a priority,” Barger said. “Every available mental health support resource must be harnessed to help young people in our schools and their families get the support they need.”
The motion approved Tuesday instructs the L.A. County Department of Mental Health and the Office of Education to design a questionnaire/survey to distribute to 80 school districts in the County - with questions regarding mental health needs - and report back to the board 30 days after.
“The motion also requests a report back within 120 days with the data and analysis from the questionnaire, and next steps to address the needs identified by the information collected,” according to a statement shared by Solis.
The motion comes less than a week after the Los Angeles Unified School District released its survey results on students' mental health. In it, students surveyed said they were most in need of access to technology, tutoring and access to mental health support following nearly two years of isolation and stress related to the COVID-19 pandemic.
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