$2.1M Earmarked To Provide Mental Health Services To Every HoCo Public School Student

HOWARD COUNTY, MD — Thanks to a $2.1 million commitment, every student in Howard County public schools will have access to mental health services for at least the next two years. Howard County Executive Calvin Ball announced the expansion of a school-based mental health program to all 77 public schools and plans to subsidize mental health resources in the community for vulnerable youth at a news conference.

"Even before the pandemic exacerbated this crisis, we recognized the gap in mental health services, especially for our students and young residents. Every Howard County student - which means nearly 58,000 kids in every school - will now have access to mental health services. Additionally, with this funding we’re filling the gap for children and families who are historically have difficulty accessing this critical, live-saving mental health care. Everyone deserves the same access to mental health care. Our actions, at the individual level and the government level, can make a difference and save lives," Ball said.

School-Based Mental Health Program

A total of $1.7 million will expand the School-Based Mental Health Program for the next two years to all 77 public schools. Howard County contributed $980,000 in American Rescue Plan funding, with additional contributions being made by The Horizon Foundation and The Kahlert Foundation.

SBMHS makes social workers available in HCPSS schools to increase access to student mental health services. Research shows that the availability of school-based mental health services reduces barriers to care with more than 70 percent of children nationally receiving mental health care in school settings. The program is also meant to create a school culture that is accepting of mental health and acknowledges the impact of trauma on students.

In the 2019-2020 school year, the program served 15 elementary schools, nine middle schools, five high schools and one education center (middle and high school students) out of 77 total schools in the district. During the program, 58 percent of students referred to SBMHS were connected with a community mental health provider and referred students attended 90 percent of their scheduled appointments with community providers. The program also saw positive outcomes with improved attendance, academic growth, improved social-emotional skills and reduced discipline referrals.

"Enhanced mental health supports was something I prioritized upon my return to Howard County as superintendent and I am pleased that over the past five years we have made significant strides in adding these critical supports to our schools. Just this year, we added an additional 20 new positions to providing mental health support for students, including social worker, counseling and liaison positions. The past two years have been challenging for all of us and we know students are no exception. I am grateful for Dr. Calvin Ball, the Horizon Foundation, our county’s health department and the board of education for prioritizing mental health access for our students," said Dr. Michael J. Martirano, superintendent of Howard County Public School System.

HoCo STRIVES Mental Health Initiatives

Ball also has included $380,000 in his proposed fiscal year 2023 budget to expand mental health services to the most vulnerable students and families through HoCo STRIVES. HoCo STRIVES is the umbrella for several initiatives that engage a cross-sector of partners to ensure all Howard County children and youth can succeed in school. Its goal is to remove barriers and increase access for vulnerable families.

Now STRIVES can also support specific barriers to mental health access – providing targeted case management, transportation to therapy, a parent-coaching program, support for under and uninsured families and those that need intensive case.

"I have personally witnessed the impacts that mental health struggles have on a child’s ability to thrive in the classroom and school environment," Consuela Robinson, HCPSS Instructional Facilitator for Social Work, said. "The COVID-19 pandemic exacerbated these challenges and the needs have increased both in severity and in the number of students requiring support. We are grateful for the recognition of increasing and changing needs for Howard County students and are happy to be part of the solution and support."

Programs include:

• Building Youth Resiliency: serving kids who are unable to access treatment due to cost, transportation and other socioeconomic barriers.
• Psychiatric Rehab Program: supporting under or uninsured youth in need of mental health services.
• Parent Coaching Program: designed to engage parents in understanding their child’s social and mental health needs and learn parenting strategies to meet these needs.
• Evidence-Based Practices Program: train providers so they can become certified in child- and family-focused clinical intervention programs.
• Early Childhood Professionals Mental Health Capacity Building: support a year-long suite of professional training opportunities geared toward three major groups: professionals, community members and youth.

Mental Health Needs

Several local and national surveys of youth Ball shared have shown major increases in the rate of teens experiencing mental health symptoms:

• In 2018, a Howard County survey found that 28 percent of high school students felt sad or hopeless for two weeks or more.
• 1 in 6 high school students had seriously considered attempting suicide.

COVID-19 has brought about unprecedented challenges for youth, Ball said, with surveys from 2021 by the Maryland Department of Health revealing:

• 36 percent of Maryland high school students have felt sad or hopeless every day for two weeks in a row the past year.
• 1 in 5 high school students seriously considered suicide in the past 12 months – and this was disproportionately high for Black students (37 percent) and LGBT students (57 percent).

In early 2021, emergency department visits in the United States for suspected suicide attempts were 51 percent higher for adolescent girls and 4 percent higher for adolescent boys compared to the same time in early 2019.

“The pain that many are feeling is clear and real. The past two years have been more than hard for a number of people in our community,” Nikki Highsmith Vernick, president and CEO of the Horizon Foundation, said. “As a result of the partnership and investments of the county government, the board of education, the health department, the school system, Head Start, the Kahlert Foundation and the Horizon Foundation, progress is being made. We will ensure that every child, no matter what school they attend, no matter what neighborhood they come from, will have access to the enhanced mental health supports they need to stay healthy and thrive.”