Drew Charter School senior Laila Shannon, chair of Atlanta Public Schools’ Student Advisory Council, said she’s seen the effects of untreated mental health issues.
“The Student Advisory Council lost a member, and he actually went into my school,” Shannon said. “So I got to see the trickle-down effect of how that affected other people, and it really just hit close to home because I knew that person.”
The prevalence of mental health issues among students is what led the council to support mental health measures at the district, like Talk It Out, a confidential text line where middle and high school students can talk to licensed counselors.
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