HARRISBURG, PA (PTTP) – On Feb.12, 2024, State Rep. Michael Schlossberg (D., Lehigh), announced his legislative draft for a new mental health initiative. Approval of the bill will be further discussed with the House of Representatives, as they have already arranged to return to Harrisburg, PA this upcoming March.
Schlossberg’s advocacy for this idea comes in the wake of recent statistics. Notably, around 98,000 Pennsylvanian students within the age range of 12-18 currently struggle with some form of Depression, with many not having proper access to treatment (M.Schlossberg, personal communication, Feb. 12, 2024) On top of that, nearly 50% of an approximated population of 447,000 adult residents in Pennsylvania who currently live with adverse mental health conditions, developed them ostensibly as early as the age of 14 (M.Schlossberg, personal communication, Feb. 12, 2024).
The State Representative’s current pilot program seeks to have yearly mental health screenings for students in grades 6-12 across the state’s public school districts. If this legislation is approved, schools that are involved will be granted a budget of $10 million. The supervision and conduction of these screenings would be overseen by the Department of Education, with student confidentiality being protected throughout the school. Parents will have the final say in whether or not their children’s mental health can be evaluated by the school.
Dr.Michelle Collins, a Vice Principal of Woodland Hills Senior High School, has high hopes for this pilot program. “Students around twelve years old…begin to exhibit the traits of not having a very healthy mental health”, Dr. Collins directly mentioned. With continued support from sixth to twelfth grade, Dr. Collins optimistically suggests that students will be able to develop successful coping mechanisms and set good examples for their surrounding communities. Dr. Collins hopes that educators will have active involvement regarding input in these screenings. When discussing the importance of student and faculty relationships, Dr. Collins emphasized that “We are the parent-by-proxy for 8 hours [for students]…we want to say this money is being given for the right interventions to meet the needs of students across the board”.
For more information visit: https://www.legis.state.pa.us/cfdocs/Legis/CSM/showMemoPublic.cfm?chamber=H&SPick=20230&cosponId=42100
Credit: Marisa Funari