May 31, 2019, The Villager, NYC: OPINION: Let camps hire mental health professionals https://www.thevillager.com/2019/05/opinion-camps-should-be-able-to-hire-mental-health-professionals/ BY ALICIA SKOVERA, Skovera is president, New York State Camp Directors Association With camp beginning at the end of June, children attending New York summer camps who have mental health issues won’t be getting the care they need and deserve. Under current law, New York camp directors are unable to hire mental health practitioners to address the myriad of mental health problems campers arrive at camp with each summer. In May, the Senate Democratic majority passed legislation, S.3834-M, to support children’s mental health and physical well-being by allowing licensed professionals to be hired at children’s summer camps. The New York State Camp Directors Association (NYSCDA) urges the Assembly to pass its version of the bill, A.3074 -A, so summer camps, just like schools, are able to employ social workers and mental health practitioners. As a New York camp director and the president of the New York State Camp Directors Association, I have seen firsthand the harmful effects campers with various mental health issues suffer when they don’t receive the appropriate services while attending camp. No child should be denied the support he or she needs due to an archaic law preventing camp directors from hiring licensed professionals. With the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reporting that every one in five children in the U.S. experiences a mental disorder, it’s imperative to New York camp directors that children attending their camps are provided with the safest experience possible. …
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.
Loss of Brain Trust features over 9,000 news stories published worldwide since January, 2017
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