By Ariyana Griffin
AFRO Staff Writer
agriffin@afro.com
A new study has found that Black and Hispanic children benefit from having in school programs directed towards mental health.
Erika’s Lighthouse, a national organization committed to reducing stigmas tied to mental health, conducted a study to explore the topic.
The organization offers a mental health education curriculum for families, students and education staff to help prevent adolescent students from feeling alone due to conditions such as depression.
A 2023 research study conducted by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) found that “four in 10 students (40 percent) had persistent feelings of sadness or hopelessness, two in 10 (20 percent) students seriously considered attempting suicide and nearly one in 10 (9 percent) attempted suicide.”
“All of our programming that Erika’s Lighthouse offers is completely free of charge,” said Brandon Combs, executive director of Erika’s Lighthouse. “We are a national program, so we are in over 25,100 schools around the country so far – we continue to grow, and are welcoming that expansion as we move forward.”
Erika’s Lighthouse conducted surveys from students before and after engaging in the resources provided by the organization to see how students reacted to in school mental health programs.
The organization collected data from students in fifth to 12th grade students across the United States, garnering a “total of 18,077 pre-program surveys were completed and 15,271 post-program surveys across 515 schools. This group was broadly representative of the U.S. schools, including private, public and charter schools, as well as urban, suburban and rural.”
The data was collected from the 2021-2022, 2022-2023 and 2023-2024 school years and found that “93 percent of students identified a teacher as a trusted adult, but only 50 percent of them were comfortable talking with a trusted adult, about their mental health, at school.”
The study also found that students who participated in the program went to “predominantly-Black and Hispanic schools, by nine percent and 11 percent, respectively, compared to seven percent for students in predominantly-White schools.”
Valencia Davis, a Licensed Psychotherapist and Mental Health Specialist said that the in school program is “a huge benefit.”
She expressed that Black and Brown students feel they have someone to trust, which can be vital to the mental health of a student.
“Students of color, going back to when our parents and grandparents were coming up, didn’t have access to anything,” said Davis. “Trauma was passed on, generation after generation.”
According to the CDC, schools can play a major role in helping scholars with their mental health.
Schools can “connect students to caring adults and encourage positive peer relationships,” and “give students mental health support and link them and their families to community behavioral and mental health services.”
In turn, classrooms are able to function better.
The CDC reports that taking a vested interest in “student mental health and well-being can improve classroom behavior, school engagement, and peer relationships. These factors are all connected to academic success.”
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