Putnam County Schools Prepare For Mental Health Needs

An expected increase in mental health needs this fall in the Putnam County Schools led to the hiring of a new mental health coordinator.

New coordinator Shelia Barker will oversee surveying all students and facility once returning to school. Coordinated School Health Supervisor Melanie Bussell said with the tornado and COVID, Putnam County families have been hit hard.

“They are going to complete a survey that will ask them questions about how things went during this long period of time off from school,” Bussel said. “Is there something that they are concerned with or is there a specific need they or their family might have.”

Bussell said the surveys will be reviewed to identify what programs a student needs. As the year continues, teachers will have the ability to directly refer a child to the school counselor.

“We will help school counselors identify if kids need group counseling or individual settings,” Bussell said. “We may even look at some kids needing an outside referral to an agency.”

Putnam County Schools will look for behavior issues, a social child becoming distant or just what students will say straight to the teachers.

“We worry about kids cause sometimes school is a safe place,” Bussell said. “We are just going to be talking to kids and watching them to see if they need anything.”

Bussell said each principal will be trained on how to handle and identify mental health issues. The principals will then train the teachers of their school.

“We are going to be surveying the adults in the school system as well,” Bussell said. “We are going to try and offer some sessions for teachers as well. We are trained in a program called Happy Teacher Revolution. It is a support system online for teachers.”