Onondaga County has rolled out new mental health services for students in almost every school district in the county. Officials say these services have been needed for years and the pandemic only made things worse.
Onondaga County Legislator Julie Abbott-Kenan said there is an issue in finding mental health care for children. She lost her young son in 2011.
“And it was good luck trying to find counselors for my three babies at the time, who really needed help,” Abbott-Kenan said. “You get put on a list. Anybody who has done this as a mom or father or grandparent, you know what it’s like. There are five, six month waitlists out there, yet the need is real and it's now.”
That’s why, she said, it’s so critical students have trusted adults in schools they can talk to. With the county's rollout of services, the Marcellus School District has added a student engagement specialist, an access liaison for families and two counselors. Kara Lux is the district's director of special education and grants and said finding mental health services for families can be a real struggle.
“Because they’re working, they’re working two jobs, so this will allow our kids to have that support here,” Lux said.
Superintendent Michelle Brantner said there was a major uptick in anxiety among students before COVID-19.
“And now add COVID as a layer, you have something that is very terrifying to a lot of folks,” Brantner said. “Students have family members who are ill. It may be there is conflict or strife in households and now students have been relegated to stay home and it can exacerbate that condition. There’s anxiety for not being in school. For some students, there’s anxiety for being in school.”
The county spent $5 million in stimulus funding on adding 75 new jobs in mental health services for students. County Executive Ryan McMahon said they know there is a crisis because 911 calls have doubled over mental health incidents and there’s been a drastic increase in suicide attempts. McMahon expects they’ll learn how bad it is in schools.
“We actually have people who are directly engaging with kids and asking them, how are you?” McMahon said. “Are you okay? And I think we’re going to be stunned to see how many people aren’t okay.”
