School leaders testify to Juvenile Justice Oversight Council on wellness and safety

Also address mental health at school

FRANKFORT, Ky. (WTVQ) — “Help us help our kids,” that was the plea from those with the school system to the Juvenile Justice Oversight Council on Thursday.

As various school leaders across the state shared their testimony on the challenges they continue to face in their district. Some even adding that their main effort is to keep kids out of the detention centers but rather assist their needs.

“We don’t want them in detention, we don’t want them removed from their home,” said Brian Bowland, the director of pupil personnel at McCracken County Public Schools.

The Juvenile Justice Oversight Council meeting with representatives from three school districts on Thursday, from Warren, McCraken and Rockcastle Counties, as they addressed, safety, wellness and mental health of students.

“We’re not equipped to deal public schools are not equipped to deal with the severe behavior issues we’re seeing. We’re not equipped to deal with the psychiatric and violent behavior behaviors that we’re seeing. And it’s not for lack of trying, because we’re giving it everything we have to try to serve our kids,” added Dr. Carrie Ballinger, the superintendent of Rockcastle County Schools.

Superintendent Dr. Ballinger spoke on the hardship of trying to balance educating students while also addressing the mental and psychiatric needs of others at the same time.

“Students are being rejected from foster home after foster home in crisis, and they have no access to mental health care. The needs of the students are so great that oftentimes they’re just turned her away, and they’re told that they’re too violent. But they’re sent back to public school for us to educate. And despite the needs that that they pose to themselves and others, they’re in our classrooms, and we’re doing the very absolute, very best that we can to respect them, treat their needs, and serve them,” she says.

“I get calls on a weekly basis of concerned parents saying, how are you going to protect my child when that child is back in the classroom after he assaulted another staff member or she assaulted another staff member or a teacher or another student,” added Todd Hazel, Director of Student Services at Warren County Public Schools.

Brian Bowland with McCraken County Public Schools also suggesting a multi step diversion reform plan, that the council said it would take into consideration.

“Diversion is a process in which you’re looking to avoid the consequences of the offense in which you committed. That is the basis of a diversion that you are choosing to make yourself better versus face the consequences of that offense,” said Bowland.

Others adding that parents should also be held accountable for the actions of juveniles.

“We ask our schools to do too much parenting. We ask our behavioral health providers to do much parenting. We ask our SRO’s and everyone else to stand in the place of parents. We need to get parents more involved in the process, and they should be more involved. Some of them are very involved, but there’s a lot that aren’t,” also said Senator Whitney Westerfield.

All agreeing that actions to help kids should be taken now.

“There’s a behavioral health service gap for juveniles, and we’re seeing that around the state in different places. I think we need to throw serious money at at that service provision network through all providers that we can in all districts, particularly to partnerships with schools,” said Westerfield.

Dr. Ballinger, also saying, “can’t put a price tag on the life of a child. These are the children of the future of Kentucky and we have to work together. It’s paramount that we work together, that we’re partners,” when talking about everyone working as a team to find a solution.