麻花视频

Tristan Lorenz sat in a room with his school counselor and principal at Alma Elementary in western Wisconsin, listening as his psychiatrist, parents and Buffalo County mental health staff discussed his new medication over Zoom.

As the adults talked, 11-year-old Tristan felt his body tense and his breath quicken. He felt like everyone was staring at him, dissecting him. Intrusive thoughts suddenly blocked out everything around him.

鈥淲hy am I here?鈥� he remembers thinking on that day in 2022. 鈥淲hy the hell (would) my Mom love me? Can everyone stop looking at me?鈥�

His darkest thought was that he should kill himself.

鈥淚 put my hands around my neck,鈥� Tristan said. 鈥淚 remember choking myself.鈥�

His mother, Christine, said she watched on her screen as her son curled into a ball and backed into a wall, knowing something was wrong. She shared a look with the principal, and then the Zoom call disconnected.

Schools across the country听are on the frontlines of addressing youth mental health crises at a time when depression, anxiety and suicidal ideation are rising among Wisconsin鈥檚 children. But funding for critical 鈥� and sometimes life-saving 鈥� school mental health resources is under threat. Federal grants that schools relied on are being cut, and听in Wisconsin, Republicans are poised to cut millions in school mental health funding.

鈥淭o just put it very bluntly, we don't have anywhere near the supports that our kids need,鈥� South Shore School District Superintendent Danielle Mikula said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 a crisis.鈥�

Nationally, mental health indicators worsened from 2013 to 2023, with four in 10 high school students reporting persistent sadness and one in 10 attempting suicide in 2023, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Suicide is the second-leading cause of death for children ages 10 to 14 and young adults ages 20 to 24, and the third for those 15 to 19.

Over the last decade in Wisconsin alone, depression among youth rose 42%, self-harm 21%, and suicidal ideation 41%, according to the 2023 Wisconsin Youth Risk Behavior Survey. Rates of anxiety increased 29% from 2017 to 2023. And nearly one in four girls in 2023 said they had seriously considered suicide 鈥� up 46% since 2013.

The urgency of supporting youth in crisis was underscored by the school shooting in Madison on Dec. 16. Natalie Rupnow opened fire at Abundant Life Christian School, killing a teacher and a 14-year-old student and injuring six others before killing herself.听 show Rupnow engaged in self-harm and told her father she wanted to die. Her therapist said she suffered from post-traumatic stress disorder after her parents鈥� 2022 divorce.

Gov. Tony Evers said in an interview with the Lee Enterprises Public Service Journalism Team that the tragedy reinforces the need for mental health support for children statewide. He also cited the and a as examples where children鈥檚 lives were lost, impacting the mental health of young Wisconsinites.

鈥淭hese types of situations 鈥� are happening all across the state every day,鈥� Evers said. 鈥淲hether it鈥檚 some kid coming home and thinking this is all I can take, and they try to take their lives, or it鈥檚 kids that turn to drugs. This is not just something that happens in big cities like Madison, Milwaukee. This is something that happens in every school district in the state.鈥�

Christine Lorenz said her son Tristan attempted suicide three times between 5th and 6th grade because of bullying related to his gender expression and intrusive thoughts, a side effect of his ADHD medication. Christine noted that sometimes Tristan was the bully when he felt students were giving him weird looks.

Tristan said he used to be gender fluid, but he鈥檚 not anymore. As he progressed through puberty, Tristan said wearing skirts and dresses no longer made him feel like himself. He said the lack of acceptance he experienced from his peers made him think he was "not good enough."

鈥淚 was scared,鈥� Christine Lorenz recalled, thinking back to when the Zoom call disconnected. 鈥淚t鈥檚 just straight panic. Like, I need my son. I need him now.鈥�

The principal called Christine and told her that school staff had activated Tristan鈥檚 safety plan. They took him to a safe room and got him a blanket. Tristan said he slept until his mother picked him up and took him to the hospital.

鈥淲hen you have a crew of people grabbing onto your son, going, 鈥業 got him. We got him. It's OK,鈥欌�� Lorenz said. 鈥淚t's that communication. It was just everything that I needed as a mother.

鈥淭hey saved my child. If those people were not there, my child would not be alive.鈥�

No sustainable funding

President Donald Trump has proposed from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) 鈥� an agency that has , including $35 million to schools.听

And in April, the Trump administration abruptly terminated $1 billion in U.S. Department of Education grants to help states expand school mental health staffing, including a $10 million grant for Wisconsin. About $2 million had already been disbursed and used for recruitment and retention, but the remaining $8 million was canceled.

鈥淭hat one hurt,鈥� Evers said. 鈥�$10 million is a lot to school districts. It鈥檚 nothing to the federal government. 鈥淭he message that they鈥檙e sending us is that it鈥檚 not our problem; it鈥檚 yours.鈥�

A similar five-year federal grant that ends this September听helped reduce Wisconsin鈥檚 student-to-mental health professional ratio by 14%, according to the state Department of Public Instruction. That means there were more counselors, nurses, social workers and psychologists to serve each student.

Wisconsin has a shortage of these professionals. To meet national recommendations, Wisconsin schools would need to hire 45% more counselors, 57% more psychologists, double the number of nurses and quadruple the number of social workers, a Lee Enterprises analysis of 2023-24 DPI staffing data found.

鈥淲e can鈥檛 afford a nurse. We can鈥檛 afford a school psychologist,鈥� Hurley School District Superintendent Kevin Genisot said. 鈥淲e used to have those in years back, but as every year we've received inadequate funding, we've had to make difficult choices.鈥�

Schools have historically relied on limited competitive grants to fill mental health resource gaps, a system that leaves some districts behind and makes services uneven across the state. And grants run out, meaning some districts have to cut effective staff.

鈥淪chool mental health is the most critical way that we can get to more kids and get to them sooner,鈥� said Linda Hall, director of the Wisconsin Office of Children鈥檚 Mental Health. 鈥淏ut all the school mental health programs need financially sustainable and ongoing funding, and that we don't have in place.鈥�

Evers proposed $130 million over the biennium in the state budget to help schools hire and retain mental health professionals 鈥� a fivefold increase.听He also proposed $168 million over two years for broader school mental health services like school-based therapy, teacher training, support staff and stigma-reduction programs.

Evers acknowledged $300 million is 鈥渁 big number,鈥� but said he was hopeful Republicans would understand the need.听

But on June 12, the GOP-led state budget committee approved $64 million over the biennium for school mental health 鈥� just 21% of Evers鈥� proposed funding.听

The committee cut $10 million over two years from current school-based mental health funds and maintained funding for mental health professionals at current levels instead of Evers鈥� fivefold increase.

In early May, the committee also cut Evers鈥� proposals for $380,000 annually for staff mental health training and $250,000 annually for .听

The budget still needs approval from the GOP-controlled Senate and state Assembly, and a signature from Evers by June 30 before becoming law. But it鈥檚 unlikely Republicans will add back any of the mental health funding that has already been eliminated.听

Co-chair Sen. Howard Marklein, R-Spring Green, said Evers鈥� budget would take Wisconsin from a $4 billion surplus to a $4 billion deficit.听

鈥淭his idea that we鈥檙e just going to pass whatever the governor has put in front of us is totally unrealistic,鈥� Marklein said.

'The feelings teacher'

Auburndale School District鈥檚 mental health coordinator, Samantha Phillips, could lose her job because of the potential funding cuts.

Her position is funded by the school mental health dollars that Evers hopes to boost, a budget area that used to be distributed through competitive state grants.

鈥淓ven my superintendent shared, 鈥楽am, you definitely have a job for next year, but I can鈥檛 make any guarantees after that,鈥欌�� Phillips said. 鈥淚 understand I was always grant-funded. It鈥檚 a little scary.鈥�

Phillips counsels students, teaches coping skills in classrooms, partners with a clinic to bring a therapist into the school, connects families with resources and even runs truancy enforcement.

鈥淭hey use me everywhere,鈥� she said.

On one Thursday in May, Auburndale Elementary students repeatedly greeted her with hugs and excited shrieks of 鈥淢s. Sam!鈥� Phillips supervised 100 kindergartners and pre-K students at recess, taught lessons to 70 students, counseled seven students and helped four crying students feel better. She said students call her 鈥渢he feelings teacher.鈥�

In one 4th-grade classroom, a girl disengaged from a game after her team lost points and the other team bragged. She left her group to sit in the corner and cry quietly.

Phillips noticed and paused the activity. She walked over to the girl, crouched down on the ground and spoke to her softly.

After their talk, the girl was able to return to the Jeopardy-style game and review what she learned about her emotions that year, along with her peers.

鈥淒estroy a box鈥� and 鈥渟cream into a pillow鈥� were correct answers for healthy ways to cope with anger. 鈥淩oller coaster breathing鈥� was a correct answer for a coping skill to use when sad.

Later, Phillips explained she was worried about this class. She had to ban games in December because there was too much 鈥渃rying and yelling and screaming,鈥� she said.

But on this day, there was no screaming, and crying was minimal. While not perfect, Phillips was proud to see the 4th graders improve their emotional regulation skills, something she worked on with them throughout the year.

Since Phillips started in January 2022, the school district鈥檚 well-being has increased from 82% to 90%, according to . The results mean 90% of students 鈥渉ave appropriate behavior, emotional and social skills,鈥� Phillips said.

Worsening mental health

Genisot said 鈥渢he needs of children certainly have increased鈥� over his 33 years in education in northern Wisconsin. He said the pandemic impacted emotional development because students weren鈥檛 interacting face-to-face.

鈥淚 think the public in general has no knowledge of the significant level of mental health that children are dealing with at this time,鈥� Genisot said. 鈥淚t's so alarming. You have kids that are dealing with everything imaginable. 鈥� The significant cases you heard before, multiply that number by 10 to 20 from three decades ago, and that's what we're dealing with.鈥�

Mike Elliott, principal of Hadfield Elementary School in Waukesha, said he has seen 鈥渁 lot more鈥� children running, hiding, throwing chairs, swearing at adults or having other large, emotional outbursts in the classroom.

Mikula said schools are expected to solve all of the problems children face.

鈥淭here鈥檚 a level of need that is beyond the expertise of school counselors,鈥� Mikula said. 鈥淲hat really overwhelms our system is when we have kids in crisis who need significant family-based, intensive mental health supports, and there's just nowhere to turn to.鈥�

School-based therapy听

To fill the gaps, schools across Wisconsin are adopting school-based mental health programs where contracted therapists from community health providers offer therapy sessions in schools. Parent approval is required.

The programs are funded primarily through parents鈥� insurance, but schools often need additional funding to hire coordinators to run the programs. More robust programs where therapists are embedded full-time are also more expensive because therapists can鈥檛 bill insurance for tasks like training teachers, collaborating with mental health staff or helping address behavior issues.

Lee Enterprises interviewed 14 districts with school-based therapy programs. The districts said the programs are popular because families can access therapy without parents taking off work. Waitlists to get into school-based therapy are usually several months shorter than accessing community-based therapy. Many districts are working to expand as sessions fill up.

Heather Birk, a Wauwatosa resident, said school-based therapy was perfect for her 12-year-old daughter, who has gone through a 鈥渟ilent struggle鈥� with anxiety. Birk said the therapist helped her daughter identify and cope with her feelings.

Birk said having the services at school allowed her to continue getting her 14-year-old son to his more intensive mental health appointments for autism treatment.

鈥淚t was one less thing I had to do because I was already running around town for my oldest,鈥� she said. Birk has since had to move districts and the new school no longer offers school-based therapy.

The Racine Unified School District is one of the furthest along in developing its school-based therapy program, which started in 2015. The district now has mental health clinics in nine schools, each with a full-time therapist, serving more than 350 students each year.

Three clinics are open to any school-aged child in the community, regardless of whether or not they鈥檙e a student.

Julie Hueller, manager of the Racine Collaborative for Children's Mental Health, said students discharged from clinics after meeting treatment goals have reduced suspensions and disciplinary referrals, improved attendance and increased standardized test scores.

Mark Sommer, an elementary school counselor in the district, said the clinics relieve some of the stress on him because children who have experienced trauma can get deeper support from the therapist. Therapy is outside the scope of his license as a school counselor.

鈥淢y time is limited, so I want to make sure that we're not using all our time on the same kids,鈥� Sommer said. 鈥淭here's so many kids that need our help.鈥�

The Racine school district takes on about 80% of the clinics鈥� cost. Student services executive director Andrea Rittgers said the district has received financial support from community organizations, including the Racine Community Foundation, United Way of Racine County, Johnson Foundation and WEA Member Benefits Foundation, Inc.

鈥淭he seed of the success that we have had is that the community decided that this is a need, and we have to do something,鈥� Rittgers said.

The Madison Metropolitan School District has a similar program where therapists work full-time in the school and 鈥渂ecome part of the fabric of the schools,鈥� said Kristen Guetschow, the district鈥檚 director of mental health services.

Guetschow said the program started with two funding sources, and now it has close to 10, which include parent insurance, state funding, local funding and grants.

鈥淚t's becoming increasingly complex,鈥� Guetschow said. 鈥淚t takes a lot of creativity to figure out how to sustain these programs.鈥�

Rural districts struggle

Small, rural districts often don鈥檛 have the resources to pursue that many funding sources.

Mikula said she applied for a grant to fund a school psychologist position, but her northern Wisconsin district was not selected. It was a challenge to even get a full-time counselor, a 鈥渄ire need鈥� in her district, she said. She had one this school year for the first time.

Evers鈥� proposed funding for school-based mental health programs includes a base-level $100,000 for each district. That would be a big help to small districts like Mikula鈥檚, but Republicans cut that base funding from the budget.

In the 2023-24 school year, the funding was based on student count and did not include a base. More than 320 of the 450 districts that received funding got less than $50,000 鈥� not enough to cover a mental health professional鈥檚 salary.听That's how funding distribution would continue under the GOP's proposal.

Argyle School District in southwestern Wisconsin received just $9,000 in school-based mental health funds. District Administrator Randy Refsland said he appreciates the funding, but it was 鈥渁 drop in the bucket.鈥�

鈥淚t鈥檚 not enough to really do anything,鈥� he said.

Argyle has a school counselor, but no social worker or psychologist. The $100,000 could help Refsland hire one, he said.

鈥淭here's a shortage of all of those positions, so finding one can be a bit of a struggle,鈥� Refsland said. 鈥淏ut if the funding is available, it would at least allow school districts to try to find somebody to fill those positions.鈥�

鈥淥ur future is the kids in this building,鈥� Refsland said. 鈥淚f we don't provide them with the services and the things that they need, it's a mistake.鈥�

Becoming 鈥極K鈥�

Tristan Lorenz, now 14, said his mental health听has improved significantly. His therapist has helped him "a lot." She taught him emotional coping skills similar to the ones Phillips teaches in her classes.听

鈥淚nhaling twice and then exhaling 鈥� that calms your heart,鈥� he said he learned from his therapist.

A magenta mirror in his locker with a list of emotions helps him identify how he feels, he said. Curling up in a ball makes him feel safe. Drawing, walking outside, playing video games, getting good sleep, hanging with friends, and cuddling his three cats and new puppy all help him improve his mood.

For the most part, Tristan said he no longer has intrusive thoughts, and if he does, he can use these strategies to make himself feel better.听

Tristan said he wanted to share his story to encourage other youth to speak up.

鈥淵ou should advocate for yourself,鈥� he said.

鈥淚f 鈥� you鈥檙e feeling like, 鈥極h my gosh, I need to get out of here.鈥� Ask. Ask your parents,鈥� he said. 鈥淭ell them, 鈥業'm not doing well. I am physically and mentally not OK. And hopefully they'll understand.鈥�

鈥淎sk them if you can go outside and walk to a friend's house or anything that helps you, makes you feel good, makes you feel like you鈥檙e a part of something.鈥�

Christine Lorenz said Tristan is 鈥渁n amazing little guy.鈥�

鈥淎s a parent, you will do absolutely anything to keep that little one safe and healthy and happy,鈥� she said. 鈥淲hatever it takes.鈥�