Welcome to October – the new school year is officially in full swing! Through the start of the year our education teams have been hard at work building and deepening their connections with students and each other as the foundation for the year ahead. There has been incredible joy in the new school year as we settle into what a year of learning that looks more “normal” than anything in recent memory. We have also witnessed deep grief alongside our school partners as gun violence has continued to wrack our school communities both on and off campus including the devastating shootings at the King Estate Campus and the loss of two incredible young people from the Berkeley High community. It is absolutely unacceptable that gun violence incidents like these have become nearly common place. Since 2020 guns have surpassed car crashes as the leading cause of death for children and teenagers and gun related homicides have shown a dramatic uptick during the pandemic.
At the center of our education work at Seneca is creating schools where students are safe and cared for so that they can learn and thrive. We will continue to work to be part of the solution and promote policies and practices that reduce the prevalence of firearms in our communities, address the extensive mental health impacts of the pandemic, and increase safety and wellness in and out of school. We have been pleased by the investments put forth by Governor Newsom and the attention being given to the mental health needs young people deserve including:
We have also been proud to work with our partners at the California Alliance of Child and Family Services to support legislation that promotes mental health access and support at school, including most recently the passage of AB 58 which requires LEAs to review and update their policy on pupil suicide prevention, encourages LEAs to provide suicide awareness and prevention training to teachers, and requires the California Department of Education (CDE) to develop and issue resources and guidance to LEAs on how to conduct suicide awareness and prevention training remotely.
At the center of our education work at Seneca is creating schools where students are safe and cared for so that they can learn and thrive. We will continue to work to be part of the solution and promote policies and practices that reduce the prevalence of firearms in our communities, address the extensive mental health impacts of the pandemic, and increase safety and wellness in and out of school. We have been pleased by the investments put forth by Governor Newsom and the attention being given to the mental health needs young people deserve including:
- $4.1 billion on a community schools strategy to connect students and families to essential services, including health screenings, meals, and more.
- $5 billion to support the implementation of California’ Medi-Cal reform effort, CalAIM
- $1.4 billion to build a more diverse healthcare workforce that expands CA’s capacity to meet the health needs of children and families
We have also been proud to work with our partners at the California Alliance of Child and Family Services to support legislation that promotes mental health access and support at school, including most recently the passage of AB 58 which requires LEAs to review and update their policy on pupil suicide prevention, encourages LEAs to provide suicide awareness and prevention training to teachers, and requires the California Department of Education (CDE) to develop and issue resources and guidance to LEAs on how to conduct suicide awareness and prevention training remotely.
Sisters Katy Noeli (left) and Heymer Johana Domingo Godinez stand outside their new school, Elmhurst United Middle School, in Oakland on Aug. 30, 2022. (Beth LaBerge/KQED)
We know that even small investments can have a big impact. Our school partnership team was able to be a part of telling the story of California’s investments in mental health as KQED shared what this looked liked in one Oakland School. The piece highlights Seneca clinician Yesi Inga at Bridges Academy in this short radio segment and a longer article. As exemplified at Bridges, as we continue through this year we hope that it can be one where we foster safety, authentic connection, and community healing so that schools can be places where all students are welcomed and can thrive.
Blog Post Written By: Robin Detterman, Chief Program Officer, Education Services
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