School districts across the country are focusing on students’ mental health as much as academic achievement as they prepare to reopen and as more than a third of K-12 learners return to classrooms by the end of this week.
Administrators of some 6,000 school districts plan to spend $90 billion in federal grants on mental health resources for employees, students and their families, as well as on COVID prevention and mitigation, after-school tutoring and IT upgrades for remote instruction, the tracking website Burbio says.
California psychologist Thomas Plante, a member of the American Psychological Association (APA) says it will take years to heal the wounds of young people who felt isolated during three years of COVID restrictions.