In the aftermath of the shooting at Marshall County High School in January that claimed the lives of two students and injured many more, state Rep. Will Coursey has filed legislation that would call on all public school districts to have mental-health professionals on staff by the start of the 2018-19 school year. They would be hired to support students and school staff and to guide violence-prevention efforts.
Rep. Coursey, D-Benton, said he filed House Bill 604 “because I think this is a critical area needing more attention. Family resource and youth services centers fill in non-academic gaps that hinder learning. These additional mental-health professionals can provide more support for students and staff, as well as work preventively to help schools create the types of environment that keep students safe.”
He noted that the General Assembly’s Health and Welfare Committee discussed last fall what are called adverse childhood experiences (ACE), which include abuse, domestic violence and the loss of a parent to prison or divorce.
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