Vernon Center Middle School receives $323K to hire more mental health staff over next three years

VERNON — With more of their students facing psychiatric hospitalizations, public school teachers and administrators are keenly aware of the need for increased mental health support in the school system.

U.S. Rep. Joseph Courtney, D-2nd District, visited Vernon Center Middle School to offer some assistance. The Congressman was on hand Tuesday to tout the $323,000 in federal grants over the next three years to help hire more mental health specialists, such as social workers.

The funding comes as VCMS educators and specialists say the number of Vernon school students being hospitalized for psychiatric struggles has increased since the COVID-19 pandemic.

VCMS social worker Gui Estes said that she was solely responsible for about 35 students last year as several students were repeatedly hospitalized.

Not only will more staff allow for a more personal connection with each struggling student, it will also help transition students from hospitalization back to the classroom, Superintendent Joseph Macary said.

Before the pandemic, there were only a handful of students in town who were hospitalized for mental health issues, educators said. However, that number ballooned to close to 15 between January and mid-March last school year.

Having more support will help students transition from hospitals, to social workers, to therapy, and ultimately return them to more functional students, officials said.

"What the children are going through manifests in the classrooms," VCMS Principal David Caruso said.

"This is not a Vernon-only problem; it's widespread," Courtney said. "Kids can thrive when they get the right help."

The mental health of students has been severely impacted by the pandemic, Macary said.