Following a recent lawsuit by Illinois Attorney General Kwame Raoul and a group of 16 attorneys general, a federal judge has declared that the U.S. Department of Education's termination of grants for school mental health professionals was unlawful. This decision, as reported by the office of the Illinois Attorney General, demands that the Department of Education reverse its actions and work alongside the attorneys general to establish a timeline to lawfully reassess the grant decisions.
Raoul, who led the charge, has spoken out in favor of the ruling. "I applaud this ruling that ensures mental health professionals stay in schools in Illinois, and across the country, these services not only support our students, but they keep our schools and communities safe," Raoul said. The dispute started when the Department of Education stated in April that it would cut the grants due to a shift in priorities under the Trump administration. This was despite a bipartisan Congress response to a 2023 mass school shooting in Uvalde, Texas, which resulted in the allocation of $1 billion to increase the presence of mental health professionals in America's schools.
Studies by the National Association of School Psychologists (NASP) have underscored the program's efficacy, noting services rendered to nearly 775,000 students and the hiring of nearly 1,300 school mental health professionals. NASP has also observed significant outcomes in schools receiving grants, such as a 50% reduction in suicide risk, decreased absenteeism, and behavioral issues coupled with improved student-staff relations.
Illinois itself saw profound impacts from such funding, with more than 50,000 students benefiting from additional mental health services since the program's inception. In the lawsuit, Raoul was joined by attorneys general from states including California, Colorado, Connecticut, and New York, signaling widespread support for the initiative that transcends geographical and, perhaps political lines. This court decision represents not just a legal victory but a clear message about the priority of mental health support in education.
