Governor Kay Ivey's 2026 Education Trust Fund (ETF) supplemental budget request includes an increase of $2.96 million for school-based mental health services (SBMH) in public schools.
This would bring the total state funding for school therapists to $7.65 million. These therapists primarily see students diagnosed with ADHD, depression, anxiety and other issues.
House Bill 238 (HB238) states that the appropriation "shall be expended to provide grants to local education agencies and public independent schools to expand school-based mental health initiatives. The State Superintendent of Education shall notify, in writing, all school systems of the availability of the funding. The notification shall include the grant application and the amount available to each system. The grant application process must require the applicant to submit plans for a mental health service coordinator to support coordination of mental health services throughout the system.
"In the awarding of grants, preference will be given to applicants willing to partner with the Alabama Department of Mental Health under the ADMH school-based Mental Health collaboration and traditionally high-poverty, underserved districts throughout the state. After funding reaches $40,000 for each system, additional funding for the program shall be allocated to school systems by the Alabama State Department of Education."
The program is a collaboration between the Alabama Department of Mental Health, its providers and the Alabama Department of Education and Alabama's local education agencies.
The goal of the program, according to the Department of Mental Health, is to "ensure that children and adolescents, both general and special education, enrolled in local school systems have access to high-quality mental health prevention, early intervention, and treatment services for children with a serious emotional disturbance (SED)."
Expected outcomes of the program as described by the state include: improved attendance, improved school behavior measured by reduced out-of-school suspensions, improved promotion and graduation rates, an increase in the number of students receiving services, an increase in hours of services provided, better functioning, fewer arrests and more connected families who believe the students' care has improved.
One service provider, AltaPointeHealth, is contracted with schools in Mobile, Baldwin and Washington counties, as well as Sylacauga and Talladega city schools, and Clay, Coosa, and Randolph county schools. A job listing on their website notes that they require a master's degree in any social work field and describes, "A School-Based Therapist works in the Public School System to provide all administrative, clinical, and mental health services for the consumers. They provide individual, group, family, and play therapy. They also provide outreach services to the consumers and family members."
In 2023, an additional 21 districts had their SBMH programs funded by sources other than the Department of Mental Health, such as school contracts or local grants, according to the latest data available on the Department of Mental Health's website.
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