Budget Battles: Mental-Health Care Seldom Comes Out Ahead

By Jessica Portner

The high school needs a new roof. The teachers want a raise. Half the bus fleet needs a maintenance overhaul. Joey is depressed.

Which of these problems is a district most likely to tackle last? When most school boards debate their budget priorities, identifying children with mental-health problems doesn't generally rank high on the agenda. But the hidden costs of student woes hover like ghosts in the room.

Of the 21 percent of children in the United States who seek mental-health care, half get it at school. That's nearly 5 million students a year who seek refuge from their emotional problems in the company of teachers, coaches, and school counselors. A recent Connecticut study found that the No. 1 reason students visited the school health clinic was for mental-health or substance-abuse problems, not bloody noses or birth control. Most schools already are providing mental-health services, experts say; they just aren't getting...