Episode 87: Mental Health and School Safety: Finding the Balance

Leading into the 86th Texas Legislative Session, much attention was given to the topics of mental health and safety in schools. Recent tragedies, including the Santa Fe High School shooting, emphasized the need to explore how to best support students, their teachers, and our schools as a whole. Senate Bill 11 (SB11), a major focus of this session, aimed to address safe and supportive schools, with mental health being just one component of this legislation. This week we are joined by Tracey Spinner, Director of Comprehensive Health Services and Mental Health for Austin Independent School District (AISD), and Shannon Hoffman, Policy Program Specialist for the Hogg Foundation for Mental Health, to discuss SB11, and the challenges of and strategies for balancing mental health and safety in schools. Related links: Episode 42: Mental Health in Schools http://hogg.utexas.edu/podcast-mental-health-schools Episode 22: Restorative Discipline in Schools http://hogg.utexas.edu/into-the-fold-episode-22-restorative-discipline-in-schools Healthy Educators for Healthy Kids http://hogg.utexas.edu/what-we-do/success-stories/student-mental-health Finding Common Ground on School Safety http://hogg.utexas.edu/school-safety What We Can Do for Our Kids Following the Santa Fe Shooting http://hogg.utexas.edu/santa-fe-shooting Mental health in schools is at a tipping point. Here is what needs to happen. http://hogg.utexas.edu/mental-health-in-schools