Partner News

Partner News

96 Posts

Texas Schools Fall Short on Resources to Address Student Mental Health Issues Before They Become Crises

May 20, 2025
A sign that reads Ronald Reagan High Schools sits in front of a building.

WA health department investigating Spokane hospital after girl’s suicide sparked public outcry

May 12, 2025
A casket sits with flowers lined on top of it. Funeral attendees sit in chairs looking at the casket.

Religious Contacts, Student Volunteers Find Themselves in Midst of Mental Health Crisis

May 1, 2025
(Illustration/Je’Leah Laurenceau) From partner Grady Newsource

Can telehealth solve America’s mental health crisis in schools?

Cartoon illustration of a video call with psychologist through computer by web cam.
©Olga Strelnikova/Getty Images/iStockphoto

Texas Public Radio: Petrie Dish by Bonnie Petrie, September 16, 2022: 

The kids are not alright. A CDC analysis released earlier this year found that in 2021— the second year of the pandemic — more than 37 percent of high school students reported experiencing poor mental health, and 44 percent reported they felt persistently sad or hopeless throughout the year.

Before the pandemic, mental health was already getting worse — according to previous studies from the CDC.

Bonnie Petrie guest hosted TPR’s The Source to talk to experts about this issue and the telehealth program in Texas that hopes to help solve the mental health crisis.

  • Dr. Laurel Williams, D.O., professor of psychiatry at Baylor College of Medicine and Texas Children’s Hospital, medical director of the Centralized Operation Support Hub, which supports the Texas Child Mental Health Care Consortium
  • Reena Pardiwala, PA-C, clinical director of the Texas Child Health Access Through Telemedicine at UT Health San Antonio
  • Josette Saxton, director of Mental Health Policy at Texans Care for Children

Listen to the TPR Petrie Dish piece here.