School Violence Demands
Look at Children's Mental HealthNEW YORK CITYVOICES: March/April 2000
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Resources to Combat School Violence
By Patrick Cody, Vice President of Communications for the NMHA
Horrific incidences of violence during the 1998-1999 school year left many people wondering what was happening in our nation's schools.
Out of the tragedy came a public dialogue facilitated by media coverage of the events. Many asked "why" these tragedies occurred. At the National Mental Health Association we do not know exactly why a child might bring a gun to school and shoot his classmates. We do know:
We don't know if children who commit acts of violence have mental health problems. They may be acting out pain, or crying out for help. In all the instances of recent school violence, fellow students said they knew something was wrong with the accused child.
- Most children, and certainly most children with emotional disturbances, are not violent;
- One in five children have a diagnosable emotional disturbance;
- One in ten children have a serious emotional disturbance that severely impairs their functioning at home, school and with friends;
- Most children with mental and emotional disorders do not get treatment;
- Most communities do not have an adequate service system for children;
- Integrated systems of care (services that wrap around a child in his or her community) can reduce contacts with the juvenile justice system by 46 percent;
- Up to two-thirds of youth in the juvenile justice system have a diagnosable mental or emotional disorder and up to one in five have a serious disorder;
- Violence in schools impacts all children, those in the school and in the community; and
- Treatment works.
We do know that this nation does not pay sufficient attention to children's mental health. In all 50 states, far more children need mental health care than get it. We have got to listen to our children, to make it okay to identify children who need help, and okay for children and families to receive that help.
With these facts -- and mysteries -- in mind, NMHA and its 340 affiliates can help turn the attention of reporters and policymakers toward an important yet neglected public health issue: children's mental health.
Resources to Combat School Violence
These resources are also available to help communities prevent youth violence and deal with crises:
- The National Association of School Psychologists and the Center for Effective Collaboration and Practice, in collaboration with the US Department of Education and the Department of Justice, have produced Early Warning, Timely Response: A Guide to Safe Schools. Download the publication from www.naspweb.org/center/safe_schools/safeschools.htm
- From the National Mental Health and Education Center of the National Association of School Psychologists: Behavioral Interventions: Creating a Safe Environment in Our Schools. Download from www.naspweb.org/center/safe_schools/safeschools_violencepre.html
- The National Association of Attorneys General and the National School Boards Association have launched a school safety web site at www.keepschoolssafe.org The site has links to a number of violence prevention resources for educators, community leaders and parents.
- The federal Center for Mental Health Services' Knowledge Exchange Network (KEN) is a clearinghouse for information including the brochure Your Child's Mental Health: What Every Family Should Know. KEN is on-line at www.mentalhealth.org
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