What you need to know
In an interview with Community Impact, Superintendent Devin Padavil said one of the district’s priorities is to address the mental health needs of staff and students to improve well-being.
Padavil said the district could stand to hire nine additional school counselors and a district therapist to meet the needs of students. However, the district does not have the funding needed to do so.
The details
The district currently employs 32 school counselors across its 17 campuses, with eight school-based therapists.
He said he would also hire a district-based therapist to provide mental health services to employees and refer them to longer term providers.
“It is my dream that we could have our own district-based therapist to have someone for any of our staff to reach out to if they are ever in a crisis situation,” he said. “Even if that person couldn’t realistically be a week-to-week counselor for them, it is at least someone you can go to that can connect you with other resources in the community.”
By improving mental health services for students and employees, Padavil said GISD would be better able to support them in and outside of the classroom.
What's next
This has also been identified as a priority for the district’s student advisory council, which is exploring opportunities for a student-driven project addressing mental health in the district. He said this would most likely take the shape of an educational initiative, increasing awareness of district services and best practices among younger students.
“If we are able to expand personnel and accessibility through the work of our students and counseling leadership, then that only creates more of an opportunity for kids to feel like they’re thriving here in our school system and learning at the levels we expect them to,” he said.
To provide these services, Padavil said the district will have to secure additional funding from the state during the legislative process. If not the district will be unable to increase mental health staff.
