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A New Focus for Schools: More Districts Pay Closer Attention to Their Students' Mental Health Needs, Experts Say, but Funding for Services Has Not Kept Pace

Posted on: Sunday, 15 January 2006, 15:00 CST

By Meg Mcsherry Breslin and Bonnie Miller Rubin, Chicago Tribune

Jan. 15--David Heidner was one of the most troubled students in his freshman class, ditching school, getting into fights and struggling to focus on his studies.

Only a few years ago, David's self-destructive behavior probably would have gotten him expelled. But in a new effort to better respond to students' mental health needs, his district placed him in an alternative program that has smaller classes, regular contact with a therapist and intensive academic support.

Now a junior, David made the honor roll this school year for the first time.

His school system, District 108 in Roselle, is one of many across the country grappling with the mental health concerns of their students. In many cases, school officials are the first responders to children's emotional needs.

One-fifth of students got some type of school-supported mental health services during the year, according to a study billed as the first national look at school system responses to mental health issues. Researchers with the U.S. Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration also found that 87 percent of the nation's public elementary, middle and high schools said they had made mental health services available to all students.

Though some question the quality of services provided, researchers say more schools are paying closer attention to children's mental health and early intervention services. Advocates say that's a bright spot in a long neglected area.

"We were surprised by the degree to which schools are trying to be responsive ... and how they found ways to do this," said Judith Teich, a social science analyst and co-author of the report. "For example, school nurses spent one-third of their time providing mental health services. That is not someone that we traditionally thought would be used in that way."

Yet funding for such services is either static or dwindling even as the demand increases, Teich said. "That's one of the major messages of the report."

Family problems often seen

Nurses, counselors and other school personnel dealt most frequently with "social, interpersonal or family problems," regardless of gender, according to the report.

For boys, aggression and disruptive behavior ranked second, while for girls it was anxiety and stress.

"I'm finding that we are seeing a lot more kids with a lot more mental health issues, and our public schools are just trying to catch up with supporting those students and their families," said Kim Murphy, who oversees District 108's new program for emotionally troubled youths.

"And if you put your head in the sand and don't address those mental health issues, the student falls further and further behind."

Despite the progress in schools, the national report also highlights broader areas of concern, experts said.

"The positive news is that schools are stepping up," said Bill Pfohl, president of the National Association of School Psychologists. "But it also says something about the fraying safety net. ... Schools have to take up the slack because the mental health infrastructure is just not there."

The lack of insurance coverage for mental illness, along with a shortage of child and adolescent psychiatrists--especially in rural communities and impoverished urban areas--is a big part of the problem, child advocates say.

Observers also noted that the federal survey did not measure quality of services or qualifications of personnel. The researchers said 69 percent of schools used nurses as mental health service providers, noting that nurses have high caseloads and "may provide services that were more informal in nature than traditional counseling."

Some advocates also expressed concern over the way the study defined its terms. Schools that simply refer students to outside agencies, for example, were credited for providing a mental health service.

"In my book, that's not a mental health service," said Ross Pesce, a school psychologist at Morton East High School in Cicero.

The report did not address why youngsters apparently need more services. However, experts point to myriad factors, from better diagnosis to more stressful family life.

"I just wish that people understood the importance of early intervention ... and took it as seriously as reading, writing and arithmetic," said Pesce, who was named School Psychologist of the Year in 2001 by the national association.

Lawyers representing area families trying to get appropriate services said the state has a long way to go. They said the study's major flaw was in failing to look at the quality of services.

"I think they're in la-la land," Chicago attorney Matt Cohen said of the federal report. "By law, schools have been required to have mental health services for 30 years. The fact that 87 percent have the services is appalling. What that means is that 13 percent of schools are missing a service they should have had 30 years ago."

Another Chicago attorney, Deborah Pergament, said she was concerned by the finding that schools with high minority enrollments in urban areas were more likely to restrict services to special-education students only.

"Urban areas are where large major medical centers are, many of whom are affiliated with universities," she said. "Why aren't those institutions ... partnering with schools to provide the services?"

'They were on my side'

Despite those complaints, some parents say their schools are more committed to mental health needs.

Margie Heidner said her son David, who has attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, made dramatic progress after transferring from Lake Park High School in Roselle to Lincoln Academy, the school for students with emotional concerns.

Murphy, the school administrator, said the success comes from treating troubled youths not as criminals, but as youths who need counseling and more support.

David Heidner agreed. "It was a new environment and nobody knew my past," he said. "They just knew what I was there for and they loved me. ... It's like they were on my side and not against me."

mbreslin@tribune.com

brubin@tribune.com

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Source: Chicago Tribune

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