LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- Kentucky legislators are taking a big step toward helping students struggling with their mental health.
Under a new bill, each Kentucky school district’s student attendance policy would have to include provisions for excused absences due to a student’s mental or behavioral health status. Supporters of the bill say it will help students get relief from the stress of the pandemic.
“There's a stigma that many people don't talk about their mental health because they think it's something they should be ashamed of, when it's not,” Kameron Julian, a junior at duPont Manual High School said.
Julian and some of her friends had an idea, but they thought it'd only go as far as helping kids at their school.
That idea has turned into a piece of legislation that could give students around Kentucky a much needed brain break.
"As school counselors we definitely know the need for students to be able to address their mental health, so we're excited students will have that as an option," Dr. Jessika Benson, a counselor at duPont Manual High School, said.
Dr. Jessika Benson
Dr. Katy Hopkins, a pediatric psychologist with Norton Children's, says she has seen an increase in patients struggling with their mental health during the pandemic.
"They feel burdened by not only their external demands but their internal demands they place on them,” Hopkins said.
She says the bill would give them the time they need to hit pause and recover.
“Taking mental health days like taking sick days are really important if the goal is to restart, reset and revive,” Hopkins said.
Kameron Julian, a junior at duPont Manual High School, and her friends had an idea to give students mental health days.
"If you were having a really bad headache or really bad stomach ache and you felt like you couldn't make it at school, you'd probably take a day to get better, and your mental health is just as important to address as your physical health," Benson added.
The bill makes no changes regarding the number of excused absences that are allowed.
"We haven't had the homework and projects load that we used to have... because it was a lot lighter when we were on NTI, so now coming back, it's even more of a stressor," Julian said.
If the bill passes in the senate, it will head to Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear’s desk.
"I think that it's really good that our state is putting a priority on supporting students and their mental health needs during this time," Benson said.
The bipartisan measure heads to the Senate after clearing the House on a 94-0 vote.
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