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VCU Poll: Should Mental Health Be Part Of Public Schools' Mission?

Several yellow school buses photographed from the back
Crixell Matthews
/
VPM News
School buses sit in a Chesterfield County lot.

A recent VCU poll added a new question: whether or not people see providing mental health services for students as a core part of a public school's mission.

Grant Rissler coordinates the VCU Wilder School’s Public Policy Poll. He says this question was new in last winter’s poll.

“Education is a key hub of so many other things policy-wise, especially related to youth. So I think the public and policy makers are constantly trying to figure out: what can we ask public schools to do?”

81 percent of respondents agreed – somewhat or strongly – that a student’s mental health should be part of a school district’s mission.

Virginia legislators will grapple with what that means next month. There’s already been legislation proposed that would require school counselors to spend more one-on-one time with students.

Editor's Note: VCU is a sponsor of WCVE.

Megan Pauly covers education and healthcare issues in the greater Richmond region. She was a 2020-21 reporting fellow with ProPublica's Local Reporting Network and a 2019-20 reporting fellow with the Education Writers Association.