Half of all Texas school districts have no mental health services

After the 2018 killing of eight students and two teachers at Santa Fe High School in Santa Fe, Texas, Governor Greg Abbott called for mental health resources in schools. I vowed to find a solution to the shortage. 

"Praying for the victims and their families is not enough," said the governor of Texas. 

Four years later, following another deadly Texas school shooting, a CBS News analysis found that most of the state's public schools had mental health problems for their students. Turns out it doesn't provide direct access to the service.

"Students, nobody listened to us," said his sophomore at Santa Fe High School four years ago. said Zach Muehe, who finished an art class at Gunman fires. “I believe mental health issues are at the root of everything. Survivors said they had tried for years to raise the alarm about the lack of mental health services for students, but often felt their concerns were ignored. 

Data from the Texas Education Authority (TEA), he analyzed by CBS News, show that 593 school districts in Texas do not have a school psychologist and telemedicine option is not provided. More than 500,000 Texas children have lost access to mental health services in schools.  

The Uvalde Consolidated Independent School District (CISD) currently has two school psychologists. With approximately 4,000 students enrolled at his Uvalde CISD, six psychologists are required to meet the minimum ratio recommended by the American Association of School Psychologists. grieving districts were not enrolled in the statewide telemedicine mental health program established in the wake of the Santa Fe High School shooting.

Her 17-year-old student, a suspect in the Santa Fe shooting, wasdetermined to be mentally ill andunfit to stand trial. I was.   

After Santa Fe, Texas officials approved nearly $100 million to increase child mental health services statewide . Among the initiatives was a telemedicine program called Texas Child Health Access Through Telemedicine (TCHATT).  

Currently in nearly 400 school districts statewide, TCHATT connects struggling students with licensed school psychologists via live video calls. 

Dr. David Lakey, chief medical officer of the University of Texas system, said TCHATT has helped more than 12,000 of his students receive counseling through the program. 

"One reason he thinks it's going well is because he asked his parents, 'How's it going?'" Lakey said. “And when we do that kind of analysis, we get overwhelming feedback that parents and children are happy and believe they have improved significantly because of that TCHATT service.” 195}

But Lakey acknowledged that telemedicine programs still have a long way to go. 

According to his CBS News analysis of TCHATT and Texas Department of Education data, TCHATT was established in 417 Texas school districts this school year, accounting for approximately 59% of the student population. will be covered. 

Yet more than 800 districts, including the Uvalde CISD, are unable to access TCHATT. 

If the TCHATT program was able to flag the Uvalde shooter, Lakey said: I think it's a far less likely situation for that individual to do what he did if you've tied him to the service he needs. "

The challenge of getting his TCHATT program in every school in Texas is not due to lack of funding. Millions of dollars budgeted for the program were not spent in his first two years. 

Lakey said one of his challenges was getting the school involved. Some are hesitant about the new program. Another challenge is finding enough mental health professionals. 

“With the significant challenges associated with the mental health workforce in Texas, one of the barriers our agency has is the difficulty of serving everyone. It's about hiring the people we need for schools across Texas," Lakey explained. 

To work as a school psychologist in Texas, you need a special license that proves your training in school psychology. School psychologists are different from guidance counselors who do not need to have formal psychology training. 

The National Association of School Psychologists recommends at least one psychologist for every 500 to 700 students, but most students in Texas have a much higher rate. attends school districts with: 1 psychologist for every 1,200-plus students, on average, according to a CBS News analysis. 

Few schools in Texas employ enough psychologists, he found, CBS News. Of her more than 1,200 districts statewide, only 39 of her districts meet this recommended ratio. These school districts serve her less than 1% of all Texas students.

About 5,600 more psychologists will need to be hired for the rest of Texas' schools to meet that minimum standard. Texas has an incentive program to lure people into mental health professions, but it has yet to close the gap. 

It's not just Texas. His May report by the National Center for Education Statistics found that only about half of public schools nationwide said they could effectively provide mental health services to their students. 

The data showed that only about 50% of all public schools offered mental health assessment services, and just over 40% offered mental health treatment. In rural areas these rates were even lower. 

According to Lakey, finding sufficient numbers of mental health professionals to work in rural areas like Uvalde is particularly difficult, where the need is greatest. many. 

"I made the point to the legislature," Lakey said. "They give me buckets of money, but if I can't hire enough people to provide these services, I can't spend the money." 

Sanger ISD, about 60 miles north of Dallas, is one of 39 districts that meet the recommended ratios for mental health professionals. 

Faced with funding challenges similar to most schools in Texas, this small rural district used community partnerships and creativity to address the mental health needs of its students. I've been working on it. 

"Mental health It's a priority for this community and the district," said Ann Hughes, Director of Student Emotional Behavior and Student Interventions at Sanger ISD. "We teach behavior the way others teach math. We don't give up when someone has a behavior problem. We get to the root of it." 

To avoid funding shortfalls in the state, Sanger ISD is partnering with churches, charities and cities to fill gaps in student services. Hughes has also applied for and received grants to help fund mental health. 

But where the school district stands out is what the district did with the money. 

Her three schools at Sanger ISD have dedicated 'movement rooms' and 'chill rooms' where students learn how to manage their emotions.   

There is a free grocery store inside Linda Tutt High School, where the most struggling children are sent.

This store not only meets the needs of many of these students, but it also has a sense of purpose because it is run by students.

"It's about contributing," explained Hughes. “Someone may have needs similar to yours, or someone may have greater needs, so build connections.”

For all behavioral programs, the Sanger ISD so the school district knows what works and what doesn't.

But success is more than just numbers.

"If it wasn't for Anne, I probably wouldn't be here," said Preston Westbrook, 18, a former Linda Tutt High School student.

Westbrook enters high school By then, he said he had moved through 26 foster homes. In a dozen homes, Westbrook was abused, he said, both mentally and physically.

Linda Westbrook had a serious anger problem when he entered Tutt High School. He often escaped to the roof of the school.

"That's how I got away from people when I was mad," he said. “I ripped a door hinge off when I was nine. I think."

"He's one of our true success stories," said Hughes.

Hughes also said she was frustrated by the lack of state funding specifically for mental health, but said schools should not allow it.

"Take small steps with the energy I expended in throwing my hand into the air and carrying it. You are taking a step, a journey, and you are making an impact on lives.”

Correction: After initial publication of this report , CBS News learned that the Uvalde Unified Independent School District has hired two school psychologists between 2021 and 2022. School year. This information was not reflected in the data analyzed by CBS News. This article has been revised to include that data.