Advertisement

Mental Health studies are coming to two Hillsborough high schools

Over time, the district hopes to expand the course of study down to middle school.
 
Tampa Bay Technical High School logo
Tampa Bay Technical High School logo [ HCPS ]
Published March 10, 2020|Updated March 10, 2020

TAMPA — Riding a continuous wave of concern about student mental health, the Hillsborough County School District is preparing to offer mental health career studies at two high schools beginning this August.

Details are still being worked out, in collaboration with Hillsborough County Community College and the University of South Florida.

But School Board Karen Perez, a clinical social worker who suggested the initiative, said the courses will be the first of their kind in the nation.

Perez is working with Warren “Scott” Brooks, the district’s workforce connections officer, to launch the classes and internships for seniors at Tampa Bay Technical and Leto high schools.

Over time, they hope to expand the course offerings all the way down to middle school.

"In the past, children were only provided a psychology course," said Perez, who has made mental health her primary issue since she joined the board in 2018.

Hillsborough County School Board member Karen Perez [ JONES, OCTAVIO | Tampa Bay Times ]

“They left school thinking their only career path was to become a psychologist. This is going to open up a whole world to them and let them know there are different tracks. There are professions in psychology, social work, they can become school counselors or psychiatrists or psych nurses.”

Beyond career preparation, Perez said, “we’re hoping that it’s going to have some incredible benefits in the student’s personal life, in their family life, and kind of fall out into the community.”

Since the slayings in 2018 at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Broward County, the state has required schools to beef up their mental health services. In 2019, the state also mandated five hours of mental health education per year for every student in middle and high school.

The move in Hillsborough goes far beyond that requirement.

The mechanics will be different at the two schools, Brooks said. Tampa Bay Tech already has a medical studies magnet program that can be tweaked to include the mental health component. At Leto, the coursework can be incorporated into the school’s existing dual enrollment relationship with HCC.

Either way, the idea is to get students thinking about a future in the field.

"Sometimes when we teach psychology, or certain courses, it’s only the theory of,” Brooks said. “The difference here is, it’s a actually a real career pathway.”

As the largest employer in the region, he added, “we struggle with counselors, social workers. We need creating a workforce, not just for us, but for all around.”