'This is trauma': Latino children face mental health struggles during pandemic [kold.com]

The halls at Manzanita Elementary School are emptier than they were a year ago. But school social worker Anthony Guillen says he’s far busier, as students struggle to deal with the increased stress and psychological toll brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic.

In a typical year at the north central Phoenix school, Guillen gets fewer than 100 referrals from teachers and parents concerned about their 600 children in grades K through 6. In just the first few months of this school year, he already has had 70.

“That’s a lot of referrals,” he said, “and a lot of them are for emotional needs.”

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