Middle school has never been easy, and studies show adolescent anxiety and depression are on the rise.
A new partnership to put therapists at three Waco campuses could help.
The Waco Independent School District board on Thursday approved a state-funded pilot program to place Waco Family Medicine clinicians at Cesar Chavez, G.W. Carver and Tennyson middle schools.
Starting in the spring, school counselors can refer students for counseling and therapy during the school day.
“There are some needs that need to be met right now in schools, right?” Superintendent Tiffany Spicer said in an interview Thursday. “So this is our attempt to meet needs at a younger age and prevent but also give guidance and help our families out who might have needs such as these.”
The partnership will provide evidence-based counseling and therapy for those with anxiety, depression, ADHD, trauma disorders and neurological disorders. The aim is preventing long-term mental health issues.
Since joining Waco ISD last October, Spicer has explored ways to help students outside the classroom.
This summer, Waco Family Medicine CEO Dr. Jackson Griggs met with officials from local school districts about how to address the rise in youth mental health challenges.
“This project is born out of the recognition that we have got to respond to our community’s crisis,” Griggs said.
Needs high for Waco kids
Nearly one-third of youth surveyed in 2022-2023 said they had recently experienced a mental, emotional, development or behavioral problem, according to the Annie E. Casey Foundation. Anxiety was the most common issue.
Waco has a 29% higher rate of pediatric mental health hospitalizations than the state average, Griggs said. But Waco has limited inpatient options for youth needing mental healthcare, and they must often travel outside the area.
“We have good ideas of what kinds of treatment an individual needs, but then there are just barriers to getting access to those things,” said Dr. Lance Kelley, chief behavioral health officer at Waco Family Medicine. “And so this is just a small way in which we can reduce barriers.”
The program builds on an already established partnership between Waco ISD and Waco Family Medicine, a federally qualified health center that serves most of McLennan County’s lower-income population.
Waco Family Medicine already offers mobile dental clinics at six Waco ISD campuses. That partnership has helped staff identify students with other needs and connect them with resources.
The behavioral health program expands that care.
“The goal long-term is there to be kind of a ‘No Wrong Door’ philosophy,” Kelley said. “That whatever we need to do to connect children with the right kind of care that they need for their particular stage of life and their health needs is what we want to promote. And so this is exciting because its potential access points for a child and their family.”
Most Waco ISD students are minority, and 89.2% are economically disadvantaged. Waco Family Medicine is in the process of hiring for the program, but it will take time to find and train clinicians who understand students’ needs.
“If we can hire a diverse clinical staff that reflects the demographics of the community, we see better health outcomes,” Griggs said. “And so that’s a high priority to us. We have had difficulty finding Spanish-speaking clinical social workers and LPCs but we are eagerly looking.”
Board members approved the pilot program unanimously Thursday, and several voiced gratitude for it.
“Thank you for the support and partnership that you’re bringing to our students,” said board secretary Jim Patton. “And as Dr. Spicer always says, ‘It takes a village,’ and this is going to be an important support and help for our kids. And middle school age is when you start seeing so many behaviors, stressors, and so I think this is a perfect way to hopefully help these kids that are starting to exhibit behaviors.”
