May 28, 2019, Owensboro (KY) Messenger-Inquirer: Mental health funding disappoints Indiana educators https://www.messenger-inquirer.com/news/national/mental-health-funding-disappoints-indiana-educators/article_301b1222-11db-5504-8282-ac36a6833014.html TERRE HAUTE -- The failure of Indiana lawmakers to approve proposals during this year's legislative session that would have made mental health services eligible for school safety funding is a huge disappointment, education officials said. Early in the session, Democratic state Rep. Tonya Pfaff, a high school math teacher from Terre Haute, introduced an amendment to a school safety bill that would have allowed school corporations to use safety or security subsidies to provide students with school-based mental health services. A bipartisan group of lawmakers said substantial language involving mental health services was later removed because of criticisms from conservative organizations and parent groups, the Tribune-Star reported. "I'm disappointed that we didn't put any real money into dealing with mental health issues this session," Pfaff said. "We continue to talk about school safety, but we can't talk about it without talking about mental health and social-emotional wellness.”… The apprehension of conservative groups related to the mental health legislation "had to do with parental consent," said state Rep. Bruce Borders, a Republican from Jasonville. He said parents deserve to know what is being asked of their kids. "That's where most of the battles came in, over parental consent on some of these evaluations," Borders said. … "They really didn't do an adequate job on the prevention side, addressing the social-emotional learning and mental health needs of students," Spradlin said. "We've got more work to do in that area. ISBA will continue to be an advocate and bring forth some new ideas in future sessions to address those critical needs."
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Childhood Lost
Children today are noticeably different from previous generations, and the proof is in the news coverage we see every day. This site shows you what’s happening in schools around the world. Children are increasingly disabled and chronically ill, and the education system has to accommodate them. Things we've long associated with autism, like sensory issues, repetitive behaviors, anxiety and lack of social skills, are now problems affecting mainstream students. Blame is predictably placed on bad parenting (otherwise known as trauma from home).
Addressing mental health needs is as important as academics for modern educators. This is an unrecognized disaster. The stories here are about children who can’t learn or behave like children have always been expected to. What childhood has become is a chilling portent for the future of mankind.
Anne Dachel, Media editor, Age of Autism
http://www.ageofautism.com/media/
(John Dachel, Tech. assist.)
What will happen in another 4 years? How can we go on like this? This is a national (and international) problem of monumental proportions. We have an entire new class of children who cannot be accommodated by the system: many are manifestly neurologically impaired. Meanwhile, the government and the medical profession sleep on regardless.
John Stone,
UK media editor, Age of Autism
The generation of American children born after 1990 are arguably the sickest generation in the history of our country.
Robert F. Kennedy, Jr.
It seemed to me that with rising autism prevalence, you’d also see rising autism costs to society, and it turns out, the costs are catastrophic.
They calculated that in 2015 autism cost the United States $268 billion and they projected that if autism continues at its current rate, we’re looking at one trillion dollars a year in autism costs by 2025, so within five years.
Toby Rogers, PhD, Political economist
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