FLINT, Mich. – A three-year program helped the districts hire more than 1200 mental health professionals, according to data from the Michigan Department of Education.

The money has now run out.

It was started in 2021 using dollars from the Michigan budget, school districts across the state could apply for the grant which then allowed them to recruit psychologists, social workers, counselors, and nurses.

As for a grant program like the one we saw in 2021, there is a push to continue with funding but right now it lumps together mental health and also school safety in the current budget proposal.

Budget talks are underway in Lansing, according to the lawmaker’s calendars their session ends on June 28, which means it’s crunch time to get a budget done.

“Continuation of that is critical. You know, we have always been behind in the world of mental health supporting mental health versus the medical community. And so again, you know, that funding has been extremely helpful and in us, developing more supports for youth,” says Nick Jaskiw, a school psychologist and consultant for a district in west Michigan.

He has seen firsthand how crucial it is to have these professionals in schools.

“It’s linked directly to the child’s performance. It’s linked directly to their social-emotional stability. It’s linked directly to school climate. So again, you know, mental health and supporting mental health is one of the pillars of good education,” says Jaskiw.

Michigan ranks second worst when out comes to student to student-to-counselor ratio.

For the 2022-2023 year, the American School Counselor Association found that Michigan averaged 598 students for every counselor.

“With COVID-19 we have to accept the fact that our children and our communities as a whole have changed and the mental health needs have become greater,” says Jaskiw.

In this year’s proposed budget under school aid dollars, Governor Gretchen Whitmer proposed 300 million dollars for students’ mental health and safety.

Before the budget heads to the governor’s desk, it’s in the hands of Lansing lawmakers.

“They have to make a permanent commitment to mental health and to schools, supporting and promoting mental health. So again, the permanent funding is really critical. It always has been critical. You can’t use three years as a stopgap measure and hope without funding that those efforts that have been put in place will continue,” says Jaskiw.

Jaskiw fears that is funding doesn’t become a permanent staple enticing people to work in schools as mental health professionals will become problematic.

“Why would I want to become you know, a provider inside the schools if I know that funding can be can be front-loaded, then taken away in the in future. So again, that would be sending the wrong message when we’re in this time of recruiting,” he says.

That recruiting portion is crucial to the success of these programs, but you need the money in order to fund a mental health professional inside the school.

Jaskiw hopes that the legislature makes a point to provide these dollars again so people can either stay in the school or they can hire more professionals.