Akilia McCain

Gary Schools: A Ticking Time Bomb

Contributed By: Akilia McCain, GCSC Advisory Board

The following is an opinion piece from Gary Community School Corp. Advisory Board member Akilia McCain.

Gary Schools have been in session since August 11. In the first month back, there have been multiple school fights; parents protesting irregular and overcrowded school buses, long lines in the cafeteria, the school running out of food for lunch, seniors eating lunch an hour and a half before school’s dismissed and buildings being unbearably hot without working air conditioning; a shooting by a 15-year-old at a bus stop; and a 2-day school shutdown over “security concerns.”

On Thursday night, I received a disturbing one-minute-thirteen-second Instagram video of my high school alma mater’s Not-So-Greatest Hits. The video shows a troubling compilation of fights and melees between high school students, mostly girls fighting girls.

The Gary Schools, specifically West Side Leadership Academy, is a powder keg and it is about to explode. The pandemic has amplified a decades’ old trend of the increasing mental health needs of school-aged children and youth in this country. Probably nowhere is this more evident than in Gary, Indiana.

The American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) contains several provisions that states can use to support the mental health needs of school-aged children. One such provision is the Elementary and Secondary School Emergency Relief (ESSER) Fund.

Indiana has received more than $1.9 billion in ARPA ESSER funds. The Gary Schools desperately need this lifeline. It is estimated that 16.5% of children and youth ages 6-17 have at least one mental health disorder, but only about 50% actually receive the needed treatment and services. When it comes to children like those in the Gary Schools – children of color – the rate is significantly higher.

We have all seen the utter turmoil at West Side and one of the ways the state’s $1.9 billion can be used is to provide mental health systems and support these Gary students as they transition back to school after over a year of virtual learning.

Our schools need a Comprehensive Mental Health Plan. As an advisory board member, I have yet to see one from the Emergency Manager. As a pediatric speech therapist, I know that such plans are essential to the early identification, prevention, and provision of services and treatment.

In Georgia, the state used its ARPA ESSER funds to increase its schools’ mental health workforce including psychologists, social workers and counselors. To add, Georgia is considering establishing school-based health clinics which provide a range of services including mental health services. That’s what we need in Gary Schools.

Unless we address the mental health issues of our students and their families, then that powder keg will detonate. The resources are there. Now, we have to plan our work and work our plan. Our children deserve better. Our community deserves better because the future is now.

Akilia McCain is the 1st District Representative and Vice President of the Gary Community School Corporation Advisory Board. Her term began January 1, 2021.

McCain is a 23-year educator and a pediatric speech-language pathologist. McCain is a 1992 graduate of West Side High School and attended Gary Schools K-12

Story Posted:09/17/2021