Safe2Say tips have AG Shapiro calling for mental health counselors in all Pa. schools

In its first year, Pennsylvania’s Safe2Say Something anonymous reporting system for schools, students and community members has received more than 40,000 tips, according to Pennsylvania Attorney General Josh Shapiro.

Shapiro said most of the tips dealt with issues such as suicide, self-harm, depression and anxiety.

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“As I traveled across Pennsylvania to talk to students about Safe2Say, they weren’t peppering me with questions on school shooting drills or metal detectors. They were talking about fellow students who seemed depressed, came to school without lunch, and chronic online bullying,” Shapiro said in a news release.

In light of the results of Safe2Say Something, Shapiro is asking to put at least one mental health counselor in every school building in the commonwealth.

“We need additional funding to ensure there is at least one mental health counselor in every school building in PA,” Shapiro said. “We must expand mental health services in our schools.”

Liberty High School in Bethlehem recently added therapists and social workers to its staff, at a cost of $700,000.

The National Alliance on Mental Illness found roughly one in five school-age kids have a mental health condition, which includes not knowing how to deal with the loss of a family member.

In November, the United States Secret Service released research that looked at 41 attacks at schools from 2008 to 2017. It found most of the shooters had a history of mental health challenges, and all the attackers had at least one social stressor, such as bullying or a romantic breakup.

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