District staff saw a shift in student attitudes after the COVID-19 pandemic, combating the rise in anxiety with the hiring of mental health counselors and forging partnerships with other services.
The overview
Cassandra Gracia acts as director of counseling services for the district, overseeing mental health counselors and social workers among other duties.
Gracia told Community Impact that after seeing a “huge increase in anxiety and depression” after students returned from the pandemic, the district invested in hiring three licensed professional counselors.
The trio of Kayla Krambeck, Nigel Ascencio and Edward Salazar, according to the district’s mental health resources webpage, are able to provide school-based consultation to students, families and staff. The counselors are also able to connect families to a number of community agencies for specific needs.
Along with counselors, SCUCISD also has a dedicated district social worker, Raquel Rodriguez, who coordinates services related to foster care, homeless services and migrant education.
The cause
Gracia said that while the trauma students faced during the pandemic was not “exclusive” to SCUCISD, it hit home for district staff once students returned in 2021.
“Not having that social time, a lot of those social skills just weren’t developed in the same way while everyone was at home. ... We had some kids who ... had one semester in seventh grade and then they went on into high school after COVID, so it was definitely a culture shock,” Gracia said.
Another trend she has seen in recent years is mental health issues spreading outside of high school walls and into younger age groups.
“Trauma is high and anxiety is high really across the board,” Gracia added. “Surprisingly, it used to be that our younger kids didn’t necessarily have as much of the anxiety and depression, [but] that has gone down to our lower grades.”
Digging deeper
In the extreme case where intervention is needed for suicidal ideations, all SCUCISD teachers are given professional development on prevention protocols and what to do if they see signs of a student's outcry.
Students are assessed on the Columbia-Suicide Severity Rating Scale, which Gracia calls a national norm. Parents are notified of any type of student outcry, with parents of those on the moderate or high risk level required to pick up their student.
Within 48 hours, depending on the severity of the situation, one of the district’s mental health counselors follows up with the parents to make sure they receive proper assistance. If a child is hospitalized for any reason, staff develops a plan to keep the student safe upon their return to school.
What else?
Mental health services can also encapsulate things like basic needs, which the district can point families to via a partnership with Communities In Schools.
The national organization works in over 3,400 schools nationally, its website states, providing wraparound services particularly for at-risk students. Gracia said this can include homeless students, students in foster care and those who are academically at-risk.
Wraparound services range from basic food, clothing and school supplies to things like finding tutoring resources or helping with post-secondary career advice.
Also accessible through the district is a Telehealth service called the Texas Child Health Access Through Telemedicine. The partnership is free for students, providing therapists who are flexible with their hours.
“Sometimes our high school kids ... at lunch they’ll go to their car and they’ll do their therapy session [or] they’ll do that at night,” Gracia said.
