Opinion
School Climate & Safety Letter to the Editor

Trained Experts Needed For Mental-Health Services

February 19, 2013 1 min read
  • Save to favorites
  • Print

To the Editor:

Laura C. Murray’s Commentary (“Mental Health Is Part of the School Safety Equation,” Jan. 30, 2013) correctly highlights the importance of school mental-health services to school safety. Teachers do indeed play a critical role in creating a safe, welcoming environment where students can thrive, and they are essential to providing the first-tier wellness-promotion and prevention strategies Ms. Murray outlines.

However, while probably not Ms. Murray’s intention, the implication is that teachers can become synonymous with school mental-health services. This would be unrealistic and ineffective, and it warrants clarification.

School mental-health services should be provided by trained school mental-health professionals: school psychologists, counselors, and social workers.

Not only do these professionals already have the skills to provide evaluations, counseling, threat assessment, and case management, they can also provide ongoing teacher training and consultation across the spectrum of mental-health issues.

They are trained to identify and “spearhead” the mental-health programs most appropriate for their particular school community. And they are the essential bridge between the tiers of supports from wellness promotion to intensive interventions that require collaboration with private clinicians.

Better teacher training on social-emotional development and the signs and symptoms of children struggling with mental-health problems is long overdue, but the math teacher can never assess a student for depression or recommend interventions.

The whole school system Ms. Murray mentions must provide both teachers and students access to a school mental-health professional who can work with individuals over time and integrate interventions with the teaching and learning process. In many districts, this will require increasing these personnel.

Given the urgency of the issues involved, our national dialogue needs to be as accurate and succinct as possible. Our focus needs to be on effective, sustainable approaches that enable teachers, administrators, and school mental-health professionals to work together to support the mental wellness, safety, and successful learning of our students.

Amy Smith

President

National Association of School Psychologists

Bethesda, Md.

Related Tags:

A version of this article appeared in the February 20, 2013 edition of Education Week as Trained Experts Needed For Mental-Health Services

Events

This content is provided by our sponsor. It is not written by and does not necessarily reflect the views of Education Week's editorial staff.
Sponsor
Assessment Webinar
Reflections on Evidence-Based Grading Practices: What We Learned for Next Year
Get real insights on evidence-based grading from K-12 leaders.
Content provided by Otus
Mathematics Webinar How to Build Students’ Confidence in Math
Learn practical tips to build confident mathematicians in our webinar.
Student Achievement K-12 Essentials Forum How to Build and Scale Effective K-12 State & District Tutoring Programs
Join this free virtual summit to learn from education leaders, policymakers, and industry experts on the topic of high-impact tutoring.

EdWeek Top School Jobs

Teacher Jobs
Search over ten thousand teaching jobs nationwide — elementary, middle, high school and more.
View Jobs
Principal Jobs
Find hundreds of jobs for principals, assistant principals, and other school leadership roles.
View Jobs
Administrator Jobs
Over a thousand district-level jobs: superintendents, directors, more.
View Jobs
Support Staff Jobs
Search thousands of jobs, from paraprofessionals to counselors and more.
View Jobs

Read Next

School Climate & Safety States Emphasize School Violence Prevention, Not Just Security
In the wake of school shootings in their states last year, legislators hope to avert future tragedies.
7 min read
Local residents pray during a candlelight vigil following a shooting at Perry High School, on Jan. 4, 2024, in Perry, Iowa.
Local residents pray during a candlelight vigil following a shooting at Perry High School, on Jan. 4, 2024, in Perry, Iowa. The deaths in school shootings last year have led to new legislation in a half-dozen states.
Charlie Neibergall/AP
School Climate & Safety Leader To Learn From One Leader’s Plan to Cut Chronic Absenteeism—One Student at a Time
Naomi Tolentino helps educators in Kansas City, Kan., support strong school attendance.
9 min read
Naomi Tolentino Miranda leads a meeting on student attendance at J.C. Harmon High School on Jan. 16, 2025 in Kansas City, Kansas. Tolentino Miranda showed school administrators recent data reflecting positive progress in combating chronic absenteeism.
Naomi Tolentino leads a meeting on student attendance at J.C. Harmon High School on Jan. 16, 2025 in Kansas City, Kansas. Tolentino showed school administrators recent data reflecting positive progress in combating chronic absenteeism.
Erin Woodiel for Education Week
School Climate & Safety Q&A What a 'Positive, Proactive Approach' to Chronic Absenteeism Looks Like
A Kansas City, Kan., leader explains how her district shifted its approach to chronic absenteeism.
6 min read
Naomi Tolentino Miranda walks into J.C. Harmon High School on Jan. 16, 2025 in Kansas City, Kansas. Tolentino Miranda is the Coordinator for Student Support Programs and often visits school administrative teams to check on their progress combating chronic absenteeism among their students.
Naomi Tolentino walks into J.C. Harmon High School on Jan. 16, 2025, in Kansas City, Kan. Tolentino is the coordinator for student support programs and often visits school administrative teams to check on their progress in lowering chronic absenteeism among their students.
Erin Woodiel for Education Week
School Climate & Safety Opinion Schools Can’t Just ‘Return to Normal’ After a Climate Disaster
This is what’s missing when education leaders urge schools to return to normalcy too soon after crises or disasters.
Jaleel R. Howard & Sam Blanchard
5 min read
A jungle gym melted and destroyed by the Eaton Fire is seen at a school, Jan. 15, 2025, in Altadena, Calif.
The Easton Fire melted a jungle gym outside a school in Altadena, Calif.
John Locher/AP