With two weeks until classes resume, Albuquerque Public Schools is expanding its student mental health and substance-use prevention services.
APS is allocating $2.6 million from an opioid settlement to fund 25 counseling positions and launch new student prevention programs.
Times have changed, as have students’ counseling and mental health needs, according to Kylee Shurter, the district’s director of prevention and intervention counseling. District officials decided to support schools on the initiative to help change students’ lives by raising awareness and improving communication skills.
For Shurter, it is another way to reach students and increase engagement. APS plans to launch prevention clubs across various schools, where student leaders will be sponsored by school staff.
Meanwhile, the athletics department is introducing the “Substance Free Athletics” campaign, an APS initiative created to prevent substance abuse among student-athletes.
APS also used funds to buy the license for the documentary “Screenagers,” which addresses how social media relates to substance use and misuse. The package includes a discussion curriculum, and the district hopes to hold several screening events during the upcoming school year.
Shurter noted that the state has long faced a reputation as a difficult place to raise children.
