GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. — West Michigan schools have a new resource available for taking care of their students' mental health.
Hope Network hosted "mental health first aid" trainings for safety professionals in the Kent Intermediate School District.
“Our school safety professionals make it a point to build relationships with all students, so this training provides additional support and confidence for them to be on the lookout for mental health challenges and provide some practical tools for an appropriate response with professionalism and compassion,” said Sean Burns, Director of Safety for KISD.
Hope Network partnered with over 80 school safety professionals throughout the Kent ISD for the training.
The need for more mental health support in schools has never been greater, according to the Hope Network. They shared the following statistics:
- One in six youth and adolescents will experience a mental health condition in any given time.
- Nearly half of teens (44%) report feeling persistently sad and hopeless.
- 50% of all mental illnesses begin by age 14, and 75% by the mid-20s.
The trainings were held at GRPS City University on Tuesday. The goal of the trainings was to help leaders identify the symptoms of mental health disorders in students.
“As advocates for mental health, Hope Network understands the importance of building a `village of support’ for our community’s children, as far too many young people are struggling with their mental health and are unable to get the support they need,” explained Dr. Kiran Taylor, Chief Medical Officer with Hope. “We all have a role to play in creating a world where young people thrive, and we thank KISD for their commitment to this important training.”
Jason Bradford, a retired Grand Rapids police officer, now works as a security officer in the district. He was in attendance for the trainings on Tuesday.
"I think that this training provides us with some additional resources to be better equipped as that first person of contact for some of these students that are in crisis, to offer them a safe place, in a safe environment, that they can express how they're feeling and provide them with the resources that are available to them," said Bradford.
School districts that would like to set up their own future trainings can do so at the Hope Network website.