One of the Minnesota legislature’s areas of interest this past legislative session was mental health services, particularly school-based/school-linked services. Several of the bills that were introduced that focused on mental health services for children were included in either the education or health and human services omnibus bills.
Funding for school-linked mental health services
The education omnibus bill that was signed into law included a provision that would allow school districts to use the safe schools levy (Minn. Stat. 126C.44) to pay for costs incurred for co-locating and collaborating with mental health professionals who are not district employees or contractors. The maximum amount for the safe schools levy for each district was also increased, from $30 multiplied by the district’s adjusted pupil units for the school year, to $36. The effective date is for fiscal year 2015 and later. (Language for this provision can be found under Chapter 116, Article 1, Section 53.)
Other related school/mental health provisions
Another provision that was included in the education omnibus bill is related to teacher licensure. In addition to the current law that requires teachers to have continuing education related to recognizing early warning signs of mental illness, teachers may now include in their licensure renewals continuing education hours on a wide range of mental health topics, including trauma, parents’ role in addressing students’ mental illness, and autism.
Additionally, school districts and charter schools are now “encouraged to provide mental health instruction for students in grades 6 through 12,” according to Article 2, Section 11 of the education omnibus bill. The commissioner of education is encouraged to work with the commissioner of human services and mental health organizations to provide districts with curriculum that includes the mental health components of the National Health Education Standards, as well as a directory of resources for planning and implementing said curriculum.
Other provisions were also included in the health and human services omnibus bill that will be detailed at a later date. In the meantime, what do you think of these new provisions?
