Dawn Trainor, Saugus Public Schools’ executive director of pupil personnel services, did not mince words when she described COVID-19’s collateral damage to students.
“The mental-health concerns are very real,” Trainor told The Item (March 28), adding that waiting lists for mental-health counselors specializing in student therapy are “a mile long.”
Counselor-access problems are not unique to Saugus schools and they present educators with two challenges: how to help all students facing increased mental-health needs following pandemic-imposed remote learning and how to help special-needs students who saw their challenges exacerbated by the pandemic.
Meeting these challenges often requires assigning students to out-of-district placements with specialized evaluation and care experts. These assignments come with a hefty price tag and Trainor has been authorized to seek additional state money to help cover out-of-district costs.
There is also $122 billion in federal American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) money oriented to student mental-, social- and emotional-health programs, according to the U.S. Department of Education.
Trainor is working to evaluate special-education services offered by Saugus Public Schools and coordinate ways to help bring students in out-of-district placements back to local schools.
Last September, the American Psychological Association (APA) outlined screening methods schools can use to identify students having problems with anxiety and depression. The APA’s website said screening in schools must be followed by action plans for connecting students with support services.
The APA’s website published this warning that, from Trainor’s perspective, has become a reality in Saugus schools:
“Prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, approximately 15 percent to 20 percent of students could be expected to be identified as needing support through screening. This percentage will almost certainly be higher given the potential emotional fallout of the pandemic.”
