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SHAC highlights counselor shortages and plans surveys on mental‑health and suicide prevention
Summary
SHAC’s mental‑health subcommittee reported plans to survey students, parents and staff to identify gaps in counseling access and suicide‑prevention resources after members raised unusually high counselor‑to‑student ratios in elementary and secondary schools.
Conroe ISD’s School Health Advisory Council devoted substantial time to mental‑health and suicide‑prevention planning, with subcommittee members outlining surveys and data requests aimed at identifying gaps in student access to counseling and crisis support.
Subcommittee co‑chairs described the group as the SHAC’s largest and said its near‑term priority is crafting surveys to capture perceptions of students, teachers and counselors about resource availability. The presenters requested district counselor‑to‑student ratios to help quantify needs and compare capacity across campuses.
An attendee who identified herself as both a teacher and a parent reported learning that some elementary schools have counselor ratios as high as “800 to 1,” and that high‑school ratios ranged “anywhere from 400 to 600.” The speaker said those ratios mean students may not receive timely referrals or support because counselors carry heavy caseloads.
The subcommittee plans to focus its first round of surveys on junior high and high school students, and to develop questions that identify barriers to services and where additional resources or referral pathways are needed. The presenter said survey findings would be packaged for the board to consider resource strategies and communications campaigns.
The SHAC did not vote on any formal recommendations at the meeting due to lack of quorum; the group’s work will proceed through survey design and data requests routed through the co‑chairs’ consolidated packet process.
