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APS expands Crossroads and behavioral-health staffing with opioid-settlement dollars but faces hiring shortfalls
Summary
APS told the LGCC it has used opioid‑settlement funds to expand Crossroads and school behavioral-health staff and services — reporting dozens to hundreds of student contacts — but said statewide counselor shortages and hiring procedures have slowed full implementation.
Albuquerque Public Schools officials told the Local Government Coordinating Commission that opioid‑settlement dollars have funded hiring and program expansion for school‑based prevention and treatment programs, but staff shortages and internal hiring/vendor processes have limited how quickly those positions could be filled.
Kylie (Scharcher), an APS program lead, said Crossroads expansion has produced two new middle‑school Crossroads counselors and 2.5 additional positions due to start soon, producing 4.5 of 11 allocated middle‑school Crossroads counselor positions. "We have 14 middle schools receiving Crossroads services," she said, and reported that as of Oct. 31 the Crossroads program had served 175 individual students with 203 contacts and completed 78 parent‑intervention (PIP) sessions.
On the behavioral‑health side, APS reported eight behavioral‑health counselors in place and one new hire for a total of nine of 14 planned positions; staff said those clinicians had served 592 students through 1,481 total contacts by Oct. 31. APS also reported two post‑overdose response team activations on campuses and several staff training sessions.
Officials described barriers to hiring licensed counselors: limited local training slots, credential requirements that differ across licenses, and a competitive labor market. Vicky (Price) described coordination with the University of New Mexico and Highlands University to expand pipeline efforts and said APS has pursued out‑of‑state recruitment and adjunct teaching strategies. Commissioners offered to help recruit and suggested county and city marketing resources could assist.
On spending, APS listed planned program purchases including vape‑detectors and prevention curricula; the vape detectors were estimated at $518,000 and other prevention items were noted in the tens of thousands. Commissioners asked staff to consider creative interim prevention efforts (peer‑led clubs, after‑school programming) while permanent counselor positions are filled.
Next steps: commissioners offered recruitment assistance and asked APS to return with further data; staff will continue vendor and hiring processes and coordinate with county and city partners.
