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Bill to fund student‑led school mental‑health pilots draws broad testimony as lawmakers consider grant details
Summary
House Bill 385 would create a competitive grant program for school districts to implement student‑led, locally tailored mental‑health initiatives. Testimony included students, educators, health professionals and advocates who urged passage; questions centered on funding amounts, rural school access and alignment with existing programs.
Representative Melissa Romano opened the hearing on House Bill 385 by describing a student‑created proposal to pilot locally determined, student‑led mental‑health promotion initiatives in Montana schools. The bill would allow school teams that include students to apply for competitive grants and would require evaluation and a minimum two‑year commitment for funded projects.
The committee heard robust testimony from students, educators and health professionals. "This legislation will profoundly affect every student in Montana by expanding access to critical mental health resources," said Gavin Mow, student representative on the Board of Public Education, recounting survey results he collected from 2,945 students across 30 high schools that rated local access and quality of mental‑health resources as low. Student speakers from Helena and Great Falls described peer‑led programs that run classroom lessons, awareness weeks and mentoring groups.
Andrea Savage, mental‑health coordinator for Great Falls Public Schools, told the committee that the district's peer mentoring effort — expanded since 2021 — trains students in evidence‑based practices, connects peers to school resources and has been used to reduce stigma and identify students in crisis. Savage said the district has seen fewer sixth‑grade emergency‑department visits after universal screening and attributed a 25 percent decline in students presenting with active suicidal ideation to expanded interventions; she also said the district's peer program grew from seven participants to 200.
Health organizations and state medical groups supported the bill. Jean Branscum of the Montana Medical Association and pediatricians noted that school‑based, upstream programs can reduce crisis care needs. Rob Watson of the Coalition of Advocates for Montana's Public Schools highlighted a coalition survey showing lack of funding and limited counseling options as top barriers across districts.
Committee members asked how grant awards would be sized and whether small rural schools could realistically apply. Representative Romano said she planned an amendment to lower the proposed minimum grant size to $5,000 to make small‑school participation more feasible; she also described the program as locally designed so that teams could propose a range of activities — from schedule modifications to peer support groups, family engagement nights or artist‑led activities.
An intervening witness from a psychiatric‑watchdog group urged that programs emphasize individual rights and a noncoercive, drug‑free approach and suggested including language about differential medical evaluation for students with behavioral symptoms.
Representative Romano closed by saying student voice and local tailoring were central to the design and urged a due‑pass recommendation. The committee took no final vote during the hearing.
