Mental Health

Education news, analysis, and opinion about the psychological and emotional well-being of staff and students

Data

Close up of a psychologist with a clipboard and taking notes and a student's knees in the background - stock photo
Data: Does Your State Have Enough School Psychologists and Counselors?
Education Week examined ratios of school psychologists and counselors to students across the country. 
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Michigan celebrates after defeating UConn in the NCAA college basketball tournament national championship game at the Final Four, Monday, April 6, 2026, in Indianapolis. The tournament is the center of an enormous amount of gambling activity each year.
Michigan celebrates winning the national championship game at the Final Four on April 6, 2026, in Indianapolis. High school students are engaging in sports betting more often, which falls under gambling, resulting in advocacy organizations creating courses on how this behavior can be harmful.
Michael Conroy/AP
Student Well-Being & Movement Student Gambling Is on the Rise. That Puts Schools on Alert
A prominent high school athletic association has launched a course to help schools identify and combat the risks of sports betting.
Jennifer Vilcarino, April 29, 2026
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4 min read
Student Well-Being & Movement Video Female Athletes' Physical and Mental Struggle to Recover From Torn ACLs
For many female athletes who tear their anterior cruciate ligaments, the arduous hours spent recovering through physical therapy are only part of the battle.
Kaylee Domzalski & Yi-Jo Shen, April 28, 2026
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1 min read
Plano East varsity soccer player Aliya Jacob's knee brace, left, is visible as she attacks Rock Hill's Adalina Flores during a soccer game, Jan. 30, 2026, in Murphy, Texas.
Plano East varsity soccer player Aliya Jacob's knee brace, left, is visible as she attacks Rock Hill's Adalina Flores during a soccer game, on Jan. 30, 2026, in Murphy, Texas. Experts explain why female student-athletes are more prone to injuring their ACLs and the consequences.
Julio Cortez/AP
Student Well-Being & Movement For Young Female Athletes, the Damage From ACL Tears Goes Well Beyond the Physical
Teenage girls are more prone to ACL tears, and the injuries can upend their mental health and academic achievement.
Jennifer Vilcarino, April 28, 2026
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7 min read
William Toungette, the assistant principal at Woodland Middle School, at the National Education Leadership Awards gala on April 17, 2026, in Washington.
William Toungette, the assistant principal at Woodland Middle School in Brentwood, Tenn., at the National Education Leadership Awards gala on April 17, 2026, in Washington.
NASSP
School & District Management Middle School Assistant Principal of the Year Is Tackling Student Anxiety
How William Toungette created a supportive school environment.
Jennifer Vilcarino, April 21, 2026
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4 min read
Image of a zen garden and with a rock balancing sculpture.
Canva
School & District Management What's Your Educator Wellness Score? Here's How to Find Out
We curated a fun way for you to take care of yourself as you worry about students, colleagues, and your school.
Olina Banerji, April 8, 2026
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1 min read
President Donald Trump shakes hands with Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin during his swearing-in in the Oval Office of the White House, Tuesday, March 24, 2026, in Washington.
President Donald Trump shakes hands with Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin during his swearing-in on March 24, 2026, in Washington.
Alex Brandon/AP
Federal Opinion What Our Students Deserve From New Homeland Security Secretary Mullin
The National Academy of Education calls for policy changes to ensure safer learning environments.
National Academy of Education Board of Directors, March 25, 2026
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5 min read
Surreal open book ready to be read in a wild meadow
iStock/Getty
Student Well-Being & Movement Do Book Bans Protect Students, or Silence Needed Conversations?
When schools ban books that contain sensitive topics, is it the right move?
Elizabeth Heubeck, March 23, 2026
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5 min read
A Mansfield Senior High School student rests during his health class on sleep, in Mansfield, Ohio, Dec. 6, 2024.
A high school student rests during a health class about sleep habits in Mansfield, Ohio, on Dec. 6, 2024. Researchers found that the number of teens getting insufficient sleep, defined as seven hours or less a night, rose from 69% in 2007 to 78% in 2023.
Phil Long/AP
Student Well-Being & Movement Teens Are Sleeping Less. Why Schools Should Be Worried
Lack of sleep is directly tied to lower academic performance.
Arianna Prothero, March 17, 2026
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4 min read
A student adds a note to others expressing support and sharing coping strategies, as members of the Miami Arts Studio mental health club raise awareness on World Mental Health Day, Tuesday, Oct. 10, 2023, at Miami Arts Studio, a public 6th-12th grade magnet school, in Miami.
A student adds a note expressing support and sharing coping strategies during a World Mental Health Day activity on Oct. 10, 2023, at Miami Arts Studio, a magnet school in Miami. Most recipients of two federal school mental health services grants the Trump administration has attempted to cancel over the past year will see their funding continue at least through June 1.
Rebecca Blackwell/AP
Education Funding School Mental Health Projects Get 3-Month Reprieve as Court Rules Against Trump
The projects to expand school-based services have faced nearly a year of funding uncertainty and legal limbo.
Matthew Stone, March 9, 2026
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5 min read
Vector illustration of a robotic trojan horse in a gift box with the letters AI on the top of the box and inside behind the horse.
Xeniya Udod Femagora/DigitalVision Vectors
Artificial Intelligence Real-Time Data Shows Exactly How Students Use AI on School Technology
About 20% of student interactions with AI using school technology involved problematic behaviors.
Alyson Klein, March 9, 2026
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4 min read
Art teacher Lindsay Johnson, center, has students explore how to use generative AI features at Roosevelt Middle School, on June 25, 2025, in River Forest, Ill.
Art teacher Lindsay Johnson, center, has students explore how to use generative AI features at Roosevelt Middle School, on June 25, 2025, in River Forest, Ill. As the use of AI among teens and young adults increases, many are using it to seek out mental health advice.
Nam Y. Huh/AP
Artificial Intelligence Data How Teens and Young People Use AI Tools for Learning and Mental Health Support
Two reports detail ways young people are engaging with AI and how it impacts their mental health.
Jennifer Vilcarino, March 5, 2026
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2 min read
Students take a recess break outside of St. Paul district school in St. Paul, MN, February 23, 2026.
Students take recess outside an elementary school in St. Paul, Minn., on Feb. 23, 2026.
Tim Evans for Education Week
Student Well-Being & Movement School Counselors See Rising Trauma Linked to Immigration Enforcement
The school staff whose job it is to support students say they see major signs of emotional distress.
Ileana Najarro, February 26, 2026
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6 min read
A panel on risky behaviors and district challenges kicks off at the National Conference on Education in Nashville, Tenn. on Feb. 12, 2026. At the podium is Ashley Dawson, senior project coordinator of children's programs at AASA. At the table, from left: Michael Vuckovich, superintendent of the Windber Area school district; Korie Duryea, the district's special education director; and Jessica Shuster, the director of education.
School officials from Windber, Pa., discussed their fight against student vaping and gambling in a Feb. 12, 2026, panel at the National Conference on Education in Nashville, Tenn. At the table are, from left, Superintendent Michael Vuckovich; Korie Duryea, the district's special education director; and Jessica Shuster, the director of education. Ashley Dawson, senior project coordinator of children's programs at AASA, The School Superintendents Association and conference host, is at the podium.
Kaylee Domzalski/Education Week
Student Well-Being & Movement How a District Used Data to Fight Students' Gambling and Vaping
School officials figured out when kids faced the most pressure and worked from there.
Caitlynn Peetz Stephens, February 12, 2026
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3 min read
Unrecognizable portraits of a group of people over dollar money background vector, big pile of paper cash backdrop, large heap of currency bill banknotes, million dollars pattern
iStock/Getty + Education Week
Student Well-Being & Movement Opinion Trump Cut—Then Restored—$2B for Mental Health. Is It Money Well Spent?
Awareness programs have not fulfilled hopes for reductions in mental health problems or crises.
Carolyn D. Gorman, January 29, 2026
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5 min read