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Delegate pitches voluntary school chaplains as mentors after intervening to help student
Summary
Delegate Rick Metzger told the committee HB 24 would authorize voluntary school chaplains as mentors who undergo background checks; he described personally talking a student down from a railroad crossing and said local superintendents have shown support.
Delegate Rick Metzger urged the Ways and Means Committee to support House Bill 24, which would allow voluntary chaplains to serve as mentors in high schools.
Metzger recounted an incident in which he intervened to talk a young man down from a railroad ledge and said the experience motivated the bill. "I was able to talk him down off the platform," the sponsor said, later noting the young man remained in his life and walked across a Towson University commencement stage.
Metzger said the program would cost schools nothing, that chaplains would undergo background checks, and that at least one school—Kenwood High—has implemented a similar program. He framed the measure as offering an early, voluntary wraparound mentoring option to reach students before crisis.
Committee members did not press the sponsor for technical changes and the hearing concluded without a vote.
What’s next: HB 24 remains under committee consideration pending any follow-up or amendments the sponsor or stakeholders propose.
