Local school districts and health care professionals are working to address mental health issues in Williamson County.

Bluebonnet Trails Community Services plans to open a facility in Cedar Park, and local school districts, including Leander ISD, have been implementing new state-mandated training about suicide prevention.

Suicide is the second leading cause of death among adolescents, according to the Williamson County Mental Health Taskforce, which is charged with identifying, and taking action on, mental health issues of children in the county. Sept. 7-13 marked National Suicide Prevention Week, and Williamson County organizations, including Bluebonnet Trails, hosted a ceremony at the courthouse in Georgetown on
Sept. 8.

By spring 2016, Bluebonnet Trails plans to open its first western Williamson County facility in Cedar Park and will offer counseling, group, peer and play therapy services to adults and children, Executive Director Andrea Richardson said.  The facility will mirror Bluebonnet Trails’ Round Rock location and will mean better access and proximity to mental health assistance for children and families, she said.

Bluebonnet Trails staffers are looking near FM 1431 and US 183 to build the new facility and hopes to choose a location in the coming months, Richardson said. The facility will also provide early childhood intervention and substance addiction treatment services for adults and children.
“As it stands, there is a limited number of beds in mental health facilities in Central Texas to refer students to or for parents to choose from,” said Veronica Sopher, LISD assistant superintendent of community and government relations. “Oftentimes we may give a referral out to families and give them a list of services to call, but they may be put on a pretty significant waitlist. … It’s a regional problem, and when you don’t have the mental health infrastructure in a community it makes it very difficult for a school district to be able to help families to get those services outside of the school system that they need.”

Education and awareness


According to a National Research Council and Institute of Medicine report, up to one out of five children experience a debilitating mental disorder in a given year.  An estimated $247 billion is spent each year on childhood mental disorders.[polldaddy poll=9080212]

Locally, there are about 16,000 youths in Williamson County who have mental health disorders, according to the Children and Youth Behavioral Health Subcommittee of the Williamson County Mental Health Taskforce.

LISD’s board of trustees and administration championed mental health as a legislative priority in the recent 84th Texas Legislature, Sopher said, and as a result of Senate Bill 2186, staff in state school districts must receive state-approved training for suicide prevention.

The district is rolling out a pilot training program at three schools in the fall and plans to train the remainder of staff in December, said Felix Barnhart, a licensed clinical social worker on LISD’s Family Services Team. The training will include how to identify students who may be contemplating suicide.

FST provides counseling services to students and families for six to 10 weeks, depending on a student’s needs, said Julie Rotha, a licensed clinical social worker for FST. Students are referred to FST when they have needs beyond what their school counselor can meet. When LISD students and families have mental health needs that cannot be met through services within the district, FST refers them to regional resources for assistance.
“It is really difficult to try to meet the needs [of students] with very few resources,” Barnhart said. “That’s one of the reasons why our district did choose to employ social workers because there are pockets of our district where students have little to no access to be transported somewhere, and monetarily, it is just not doable for them.”

Future services


For the 2015-16 school year, LISD hired seven additional counselors, who support students with academic needs as well as offer mental health guidance, said Megan Cusson-Lark, former director of guidance and counseling.

The district is also taking measures to understand its demographics and what services may be necessary in the future by implementing an in-depth system to track mental health information in the district, Cusson-Lark said, including the number of suicide risk assessments completed. There was one suicide in LISD in 2014-15.

General demographic information, such as gender, race and grade level will also be tracked.

Cusson-Lark said LISD is also looking into suicide prevention curriculum for certain grade levels. However, research and parent involvement would be necessary before anything is implemented.

Current programs available for students include anti-bullying and leadership programs and Anonymous Alerts, a program that allows students to report bullying, threats, weapons and drug-related activity at school using an app. All reports submitted by students are anonymous.

Round Rock ISD also participates in Anonymous Alerts for students. Every RRISD counselor is required to attend at least one workshop through one of the region’s at-risk counseling networks, said Dr. Christina Wiswell, RRISD’s director of counseling services. RRISD, similar to LISD, is also making suicide prevention a priority and is participating in two grant-funded programs, Wiswell said.

Since late August, Bluebonnet Trails and LISD have been in discussion about how to better work together and provide services for students, Richardson said.

Although concrete plans have yet to be determined, telepsychiatry is essential to providing better access to mental health care, she said, and is likely to be an available service in the future. Telepsychiatry allows mental health professionals to conduct appointments, such as for counseling, via live video.

“Mental health is so fluid because we can assess a student and right now they may be low-risk, but then they go home and something can trigger … and they can become high-risk. … [It is important] for parents to communicate with their kids about mental health—about issues that may arise in their daily lives. … A lot of times, awareness is key. If we’re aware … in a lot of cases we can prevent additional things from occurring.”[polldaddy poll=9080212]

Local Help


Leander ISD’s Family Services Team refers families in non-emergency situations to resources in the community for assistance if additional help is needed outside of LISD. FST’s Community Resource Guide includes area organizations that can assist with issues including alcohol/substance abuse, child abuse, domestic violence, homelessness and pregnancy. Here are some their recommendations. To view the full list, visit www.leanderisd.org.

Alcohol/substance abuse


Alcohol & Drug Awareness Institute
512-459-3940 • www.alcoholanddrugawareness.com
8711 Burnet Road., Ste. A-­1, Austin

Alcoholics Anonymous/Central Texas Hotline
512-444-­0071 • www.austin.aa.org

Chemical Abuse Prevention Program (CAPP) Leander ISD
512-570-­0315 • www.leanderisd.org

Child abuse prevention


Center for Child Protection
512-472-­1164 • www.centerforchildprotection.org
8509 FM 969, Bldg. 2, Austin

Child Abuse Hotline
800-252-­5400 • www.txabusehotline.org

Child Care Management Services
877-223-­0404 (Williamson County),
512-597-­7191 (Travis County)
www.workforcesolutionsrca.com
1101 Arrow Point Drive, Ste. 203, Cedar Park

Child care/mentorship programs
Big Brothers/Big Sisters Program
512-472-­5437 • www.bbbscentraltx.org
1400 Tillery St., Austin
 
Child Support Hotline
800-252-­8014 • www.oag.state.tx.us

LifeWorks Emergency Shelter
www.lifeworksaustin.org
512-735-2400

STARRY (emergency shelter serves children who need immediate protection, typically after being removed from their homes by court order due to life-­threatening abuse or neglect)
512-246-­4276 (emergency shelter)
512-246-­4303 (SAFE program)
www.childrenatheartministries.org/starry-home

Williamson County Children’s Advocacy Center
512-943-­3701 • www.wilcocac.org
1811 SE Inner Loop, Georgetown

Counseling


Austin Child Guidance Center
512-451-­2242 • www.austinchildguidance.org
810 W. 45th St., Austin

Bluebonnet Trails Community Services
512-244-­8858 (mental health),
800-­841-­1255 (24-hour crisis hotline)
www.bbtrails.org
1009 N. Georgetown St., Round Rock

Capital Area Counseling
512-302-­1000, ext. 100 • https://camhc.org

Capital Area Psychological Association Referrals to psychologists
512-451-­4983 • www.austinpsychologists.net
P.O. Box 1448, Cedar Park

Hope Alliance
Counseling for victims of domestic violence and sexual assault
512-255-­1212, Toll-free: 800-460-­7233
www.hopealliancetx.org
211 Commerce Blvd., Ste. 103, Round Rock

Psychiatric Emergency Services (PES)
24-hour emergency psychiatric services
512-472-­4357 • www.integralcare.org
56 East Ave., Austin

SafePlace
512-267-­7233 • www.safeplace.org
1515A Grove Blvd., Austin