When school started last year, the school districts braced for an influx of pandemic-generated mental health challenges, and they got it.
So this year, everyone’s ready, says Miami-Dade Superintendent Dr. Jose Dotres.
"Let’s not forget also that we have entered into a landscape where mental health becomes critically important, and so you will see that education now, moving forward, you have to have the academic progress of a child very well in tune with the mental health conditions or concerns, supports that children need,” Dotres said.
“We are doing so much to identify children’s needs early, being preventative, awareness, and that’s training for staff, students and parents,” said Sally Alayon, the school district’s assistant superintendent in charge of mental health services.
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Last May, Miami-Dade Public Schools started a program to teach high school students to recognize signs of depression, anxiety, and substance abuse among their peers, a program that will continue this school year.
Mental health counseling is available on campus for any student who needs it.
“And these therapeutic services range from depression, treating depression, treating anxiety, or treating any type of trauma,” said Lissette Colla-Maza, a school-based mental health counselor.
The biggest area of focus is crisis intervention, identifying kids who are having issues, and then getting those kids the help and services they need to hopefully fix the situation, whether it requires counseling, social workers, or even law enforcement.
“Middle school student comes into our clinic, presenting with I can’t breathe,” Colla-Maza said, recounting a case from last year. “I went ahead and I assessed the panic attack, we talked about it, and she was able to trust me enough to let me know that she was being abused at her home.”
That was one of the thousands of interventions performed by school-based counselors last year.
“We also are happy to say that the number of sessions and referrals have increased and we say that in a good way ‘cause people are now removing the stigma of mental health, they’re understanding, they’re aware of the importance, mental health is just as important as physical health,” Alayon said.
Nationally, 20% of teenagers will have a mental health issue before they turn 18. Parents and students should know there is help available, and there’s no shame in seeking it.
