The Current Situation
The current situation regards the stigmatization of mental illnesses in adolescents. It is important that we look at this issue in a friendly and appropriate way, as it is a serious and crucial topic to the prosperity of our youth. This section describes the disagreement and current policy that has been implemented in order to combat this issue.
The Disagreement
The disagreement with this issue is that some members of older generations sway into the mindset of, “well, we survived mental illnesses, so why are younger generations complaining so much about it?” This leads to adults dismissing potentially serious issues within our youth, leaving many children with undiagnosed and untreated health problems. Stressors such as social media’s unrealistic expectations for perfection and higher grading standards lower the self esteem of 21st century students; similarly, colleges require more from students than they used to. When parents and adults do not understand the amount of stress that students are under even just regarding getting into college, they disregard the mental health issues that come with such unrealistic expectations. Standards are clearly changing, as even “students in the Harvard class of 1995 averaged 1390 total on the [SAT]” while the current average sums up to a whopping 1540 on a 1600 scale (Lee)¹. Aside from the disagreement between generations, the schools also have fears about overstepping their educational boundaries in a mental health class due to the complexities of the topic. Another concern for the school is the funding and effort that such a class would require. Thus, the true disagreement on the issue of mental health merely stems from a lack of education of the subject matter.
Currently Implemented Policy
Ridge High School's policy states that “Ridge High School has established a comprehensive Student Assistance Program to address the various needs of students and families experiencing such things as child-focused crisis, substance abuse, mental health issues and/or psychosocial stressors. The Student Assistance Program Intervention and Prevention efforts include assessment, short-term counseling, group counseling, referrals and collaboration with parents and other systems” (Bernards BOE)². Ridge High also has a Student Assistance Counselor program, which is designed to collaborate with parents in an effort to determine effective strategies to best support their children. Furthermore, if necessary, SACs may refer students to practitioners outside of school to assure that they receive the help that they need. Though SACs can be helpful, the current policy is not effective enough. A majority of students at Ridge are not aware that we have SACs, who they are, or what exactly they can help with. Though all students have access to these counselors, Ridge has not provided students with sufficient information regarding who they are or how to approach them. AP Psychology teacher Laura Rieder asserts that “School Assistance Counselors are much more equipped to handle [serious topics of discussion] than guidance counselors, but they are [only] known when a kid is really on the verge of some kind of crisis”. Although Ridge High School is equipped with apt resources to benefit the mental health of our student body, these resources are not promoted unless students are suffering dramatically; this creates 1) a stigma surrounding going to SACs for help; this leads to their lack of usage for the benefit of students and 2) overworked, overwhelmed guidance counselors that are not as equipped to handle the amount of pressure they are currently under.
Role of the Government
The government should be involved in this solution because the Preamble of the U.S. Constitution states that it is the duty of the government to "promote the general welfare" of its people. The mental health and general well-being of students in schools falls under this umbrella; mental health is an issue that only rises in severity as generations pass. The public demands recognition for the betterment of future generations. Without federal or state recognition, the issue does not gain the same sense of legitimacy. Because this is such a pressing issue in school districts all around the country, it is important that they are striving to fix this issue. The government should take on the job of creating and implementing guidelines and programs for schools to utilize in order to help their students that struggle: they should make “efforts to develop and implement culturally and linguistically competent programs that promote the health, safety and wellness of young people and their families” (MHA)³. Clearly, stress and mental health issues are extremely prominent in schools all around the country, but, not enough is being done about it. Far too many students that struggle with mental health issues do not get the help that they need; it is the government’s job to make sure that they are properly provided with the resources that are necessary to help them. The states and local school boards should be in charge of addressing this issue, because under our system of federalism as outlined by the 10th Amendment, "The powers not delegated to the United States by the Constitution, nor prohibited by it to the States, are reserved to the States respectively, or to the people."