{"id":88366,"date":"2020-05-18T11:00:00","date_gmt":"2020-05-18T17:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/without-schools-how-are-students-accessing-counseling\/"},"modified":"2020-05-18T11:00:00","modified_gmt":"2020-05-18T17:00:00","slug":"without-schools-how-are-students-accessing-counseling","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dh.durangoherald.com\/tj\/without-schools-how-are-students-accessing-counseling\/","title":{"rendered":"Without schools, how are students accessing counseling?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

\"\"
Illustration by Gary Markstein<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p>

As public schools and colleges move to remote learning to minimize the spread of the novel coronavirus, students and counselors are faced with a new challenge: How do students access school-based resources for counseling and mental health support?<\/p>\n

Throughout the Four Corners, mental health providers and school counselors have worked to adjust services in a rapidly shifting environment to ensure students\u2019 basic needs are met.<\/p>\n

Many students who rely on schools for emotional support were left stranded with the abrupt nature of the transition from in-person learning to virtual learning, something that will last for the remainder of the school year, if not longer.<\/p>\n

The transition can be difficult for children and young adults. In addition to being scared and confused about the public health crisis, students have fewer in-person interactions with their peers and mentors. And being confined at home can spark feelings of isolation and detachment.<\/p>\n

Counseling is perhaps more important than ever. But counselors can no longer offer support in they way they used to, perhaps with a hug or a high-five. But they are finding other ways to offer therapy, including car-side visits, if necessary.<\/p>\n

Here\u2019s how schools across the Four Corners are responding.<\/p>\n

\u2018There was no preparation for this\u2019<\/div>\n

In Montezuma County, school counselors and mental health providers have had to rapidly shift their programming to connect with students from afar.<\/p>\n

At Montezuma-Cortez Middle School, counselors Robyne Cote and Carrie Schneider say it\u2019s all about maintaining relationships. When the coronavirus suddenly canceled school in March, they were worried about how to connect with students, particularly because the closures were so abrupt.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere was no preparation for this,\u201d Cote said.<\/p>\n

They hope to have a school staff member reach every student. And a big part of the job is making sure students\u2019 basic needs are met immediately \u2013 like Maslow\u2019s hierarchy of needs, Schneider said.<\/p>\n

\u201cJust making sure that our students have food, a place to stay, money to be able to pay their rent or whatever else they need to,\u201d she said. \u201cThen being able to go, \u2018OK, do you have computers, do you have internet access?\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n

A constant thread among district counselors is figuring out how to support students in adverse home situations. Shortly after in-person classes were canceled, they sent out a survey to students with questions related to safety and whether basic needs were being met.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe had a really high response to that,\u201d Cote said.<\/p>\n

They\u2019ve been seeing different types of young people. When campuses were open, the counselors more frequently saw students with school-induced anxiety, but now many of those young people are fine \u2013 instead, counselors worry about students facing stressful home circumstances.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s been easier to connect directly with older students, who are more likely to have their own technological devices. For younger students, especially at elementary schools, counselors tend to speak with parents, which can change the situation.<\/p>\n

\u201cUsually a kid comes in, it\u2019s a space to be able to talk,\u201d Schneider said. \u201cAnd then when you have a parent there, you have siblings there \u2013 there\u2019s a whole shift in dynamic.\u201d<\/p>\n

Another persistent discussion has been the issue of connecting with students remotely. This has been the hardest part for Cote \u2013 her strength is her ability to build relationships, and she can\u2019t high-five students or take them for a walk from a computer screen.<\/p>\n

But they\u2019ve held group hangout sessions via Google Classroom, and the Pi\u00f1on Project and Ute Mountain Ute education department have jumped in to help provide internet access.<\/p>\n

The Four Corners Health Clinic, which operates at Southwest Open School in Cortez and at the Dolores school campus, has remained busy, although its style has shifted.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019ve changed our business model,\u201d said Rebecca Doughty, program manager for both sites. The school-based health clinics offer physical, behavioral and mental health services to all young people up through age 21.<\/p>\n

They\u2019ve adjusted their practices but still encourage patient visits. The lobby doors remain locked, with signs posted in front asking people to call first, and if an in-person visit is necessary, they limit the number of patients allowed in at a time. The providers are using telehealth, telephonic and even car-side visits.<\/p>\n

While patient visits have substantially decreased, they\u2019re also looking to the basics \u2013 the sites are seeing students with a greater need for essential supplies, as family members lose work.<\/p>\n

\u201cAs a clinic, we don\u2019t have a lot of resources to help students with some of these kinds of things, so we just do a lot of it out of pocket,\u201d Doughty said.<\/p>\n

And once school starts up again, they expect an uptick in appointments.<\/p>\n

\u201cI have a concern that these kids are losing a lot of their social contact, their social interaction,\u201d Doughty said.<\/p>\n

She believes they might see an increase in depression and anxiety among patients.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s the fear of the unknown,\u201d she said. \u201cYou just don\u2019t know.<\/p>\n

Durango<\/div>\n

Samantha Tower, coordinator of student support services with Durango School District 9-R, said the relationships school counselors have built with students helped with the rapid move from in-person sessions to virtual visits.<\/p>\n

\u201cBut, it\u2019s rough. It\u2019s hard for students, families and counselors when you are not there physically. When a student is having a rough time, you want to be there to be able to offer a hug, and it\u2019s difficult when you\u2019re unable to offer that support,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

Earlier this month, counselors began making home visits to students to try to maintain personal relationships, Tower said.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re maintaining social distance, and it provides some personal contact that you can\u2019t get in a virtual format even if it\u2019s just to drive by a student\u2019s house and wave,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n

\"Sarah
Sarah St. John, a counselor at Miller Middle School, holds office hours with students. One question she asks them is how they are feeling that day.<\/span>Courtesy of Durango School District 9-R<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p>

While bullying can still be a concern, the novel coronavirus has also led to more isolation, an especially difficult emotional adjustment for middle and high school students, and counselors are working to help students adjust.<\/p>\n

\u201cSocial life is so critical in middle school and high school, and when you lose those social interactions with your peers, it creates a sense of loneliness,\u201d Tower said.<\/p>\n

Beyond emotional needs, counselors are seeing more families needing help with basic needs.<\/p>\n

The economic disruptions caused by COVID-19 have school counselors finding more families under stress to provide adequate meals or to pay the monthly electric bill.<\/p>\n

Manna soup kitchen works with Durango schools on the Backpack Program to provide meals for families over the weekends when school is not in session.<\/p>\n

The number of students who are taking home backpacks \u2013 which consist of seven meals, two breakfasts, two lunches and three dinners \u2013 has increased from 200 before COVID-19 restrictions to 400 since in-person classes were replaced by at-home and remote learning.<\/p>\n

9-R Superintendent Dan Snowberger said the district is seeing new families reaching out for support with the unique pressures created by COVID-19.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019ve seen stressors emerge in families who have not always needed assistance,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

\"Courtesy
Courtesy of Durango School District 9-R<br><br>Kim Osbey, a counselor at Escalante Middle School, meets with a students weekly over the computer. Osbey has daily office hours so students can reach out to her.<\/span>du1-i-syn<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p>

Life without soccer clubs, gymnastic practice or the high school game night produces its own kind of difficulties that some families struggle with.<\/p>\n

\u201cStaying in the house is not always so easy,\u201d Snowberger said.<\/p>\n

If 9-R is not seeing a child attend his or her remote classes, Snowberger said the district strives to check on the family to ensure \u201ceverything is all right.\u201d<\/p>\n

Snowberger said teachers are also adjusting the amount of work they give students based on the different stresses families are under.<\/p>\n

\u201cFamilies are seeing an increased level of stress. And if school is adding another stress point to the family, if they are feeling burdened by school, we want them to reach out to us. School is important, but family health is, too,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Older students have different concerns<\/div>\n

Mental health services are easier to access for college students than younger children, who might need to rely on a parent to provide virtual access. But older students face their own challenges.<\/p>\n

Older students have more varied needs. They may be worried about paying rent or stressed about future job prospects. To understand those needs, San Juan College conducted a listening campaign of sorts. While mental health was a component, many students were concerned with basic needs like financial aid, a lack of access to technology and feeling cut off from friends.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe president (of San Juan College) was quick to recognize that we needed to talk to students, to see how their well-being is,\u201d said Dr. Boomer Appleman, vice president for student services at the college.<\/p>\n

\"Julia
Julia Dengel, a mental health counselor with San Juan College, conducts teleheath sessions with students from her home while the college remains closed during the COVID-19 pandemic.<\/span>Courtesy of San Juan College<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p>

The college has transitioned all counseling services to telehealth sessions, by phone or video. Since the pandemic and closures began, there has been an increase in students seeking services, but Appleman said it has not been a dramatic jump in numbers.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s a different age than it used to be, and students are more in-tune with needing good, strong mental health support, and they\u2019re more willing to access those,\u201d he said. \u201cWe\u2019re very relieved and pleased that (students) access it.\u201d<\/p>\n

Farmington Municipal Schools<\/a> has helped refer parents and students to a new app, NMConnect, available through the state\u2019s Behavioral Health Collaborative and New Mexico Crisis Access Line<\/a>. The program was launched in response to COVID-19 and the growing emotional support needs around it. The phone app offers free 24-hour crisis and non-crisis support, including access to behavioral health professionals who will text or call.<\/p>\n

\u201cAs the COVID-19 pandemic continues to force physical isolation, many people may experience challenging behavioral health symptoms, some perhaps for the first time,\u201d said Bryce Pittenger with the Behavioral Health Collaborative.<\/p>\n

Throughout the Four Corners, there is a concern with mental health professionals and school administrators that mental health needs of their students will extend beyond the pandemic.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe want to make sure they have the coping skills to walk along with them during this,\u201d Appleman said.<\/p>\n

lweber@durangoherald.com<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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