Two bills related to mental health on school campuses advance from Senate Education. Lake Charles Senator Mark Abraham’s bill allows public schools to employ or allow a volunteer chaplain to provide support services for students and teachers. He said in the two states that do allow chaplains…
“In the 30,000 schools the teen pregnancy rates are drastically down, suicides in the 30,000 schools are zero,” said Abraham.
Abraham said fifteen other states are currently considering such laws, and it’s not just students who benefit.
“It has been helping with mental illness not only for the students, but also for the teacher. There’s been less teacher attrition as a result of chaplains in these schools,” said Abraham.
Baton Rouge Senator Regina Barrow’s bill promotes awareness of the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline 9-8-8. Schools would be required to post the 24/7 free counseling number on their website and school ID cards. Barrow quoted concerning suicide statistics from 2021…
“Louisiana is 14th in the nation for the cause of suicide. We are third in the nation as it relates between the ages of 10 to 34. That just really, just really, I don’t know, it just does something to me,” said Barrow.
Barrow said knowing that individuals as young as 10 years old have committed suicide is heartbreaking and she wants anyone who is struggling to know help is a phone call away.
“And simply what this bill does, is actually requires, on the kid’s badges, that they already have for school, that on the back of it have the 9-8-8 number on there that if they need help or someone to talk to this is where you can call,” said Barrow.
In 2021, there were 689 suicides in Louisiana.
