FORT COLLINS, Colo. — As a response to a mental health crisis facing youth, Poudre Schools is using federal dollars to reach more students with mental health support and resources. They hired graduate students as mental health specialist interns and placed them in schools that need the most help with kids' mental health needs.
At Rocky Mountain High School, students are in class and focused on their work. The lessons aren't on math or science, instead, these lessons are focused on the students' social-emotional learning.
"You get to decide how you want to impact people every day," said Blake McLaughlin, a mental health specialist intern for the school. He's a recent Colorado State University graduate working with the high school's men's group.
McLaughlin said the group has helped these young men open up and support one another.
"With that group, I think I’ve just seen the students grow more comfortable. In recent weeks, seeing it become something, just really seeing students be themselves, just seeing them show up in a way that’s so socially supportive of one another," McLaughlin said. "Showing up in that space authentically and showing up in that space to support one another and bringing issues they are having with their lives to that group and getting support from myself, and peers. But I think the peer dynamic is really where the power of the group is found.”
McLaughlin is one of 10 mental health specialist interns stationed at schools around the Poudre district, thanks to a $9.7 million federal grant to increase school mental health support over five years.
School social worker Tricia Van Horssen said these interns are building relationships and making an impact.
"I think it's been a change and it's also, we've been able to see where the needs are and really be able to plug them into where we don't have the staff to do it or it's needs we're not able to be met," she said. "So having just additional staffing has been amazing because also, like this men's group wouldn't be happening."
Liz Davis is the district's senior executive director of student services. "Our student interns have been incredibly impactful. They're amazing. Our students feel extremely connected to them."
Davis said the grant and the interns allow them to reach more students with more mental health services while digging deeper into those individual issues and needs.
"Post-COVID, our students really struggled with anxiety and some of their mental health needs. And some of our staffing ratios are not meeting some of the national averages for mental health providers," Davis said. "So they're helping us bridge that gap so students have access to more mental health providers and get more support."
McLaughlin said there can be many things that can affect people emotionally that can lead to academic issues in class. He said many students will brush their emotional problems aside to focus on school. "Because when you have needs that aren't met in any various capacity, it will be really difficult to succeed academically," he said.
McLaughlin said he's proud of the work he sees from his students and excited for the growth that's still to come.
"I'm excited to finish out the school year with you guys and whatever is in store for next year," McLaughlin said to the students in his men's group gathered around him at school.
The district's mental health interns are students at CSU who graduate this week and will spend the next two years with Poudre as fellows.
Ten more student interns will join the district in the fall and the district plans to add 10 more interns every year for the next four years.
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