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Counsellors concerned after Catholic schools cut contract

Nov 8, 2017 | 11:00 AM

Former school counsellors are concerned students may fall through the cracks after a budget shortfall led Prince Albert’s Catholic school division to end a partnership with Catholic Family Services at the start of this school year.

Louise Zurowski, executive director Catholic Family Services, said the school division’s funding for three full-time elementary school counsellors was cut in September. Students looking for mental health support or counselling are still referred to their organization, Zurowski said, but they are now forced to pay for the service. The sessions are no longer held in the schools, she said, and students are forced to wait on the same list as everyone else.

“We’re going to have to tell people to go on a wait-list because we simply can’t manage the demand,” Zurowski told paNOW. “We have to be up front with people and we’ll tell them there’s a two-to three-week wait list to get in.”

Zurowski said Catholic Family Services had between 150 and 200 open files when the partnership ended, and she believed many of those cases will no longer have access to mental health supports. Many students do not have the financial support or transportation to attend and pay for counselling, she said, and in some cases young people cannot ask a parent for help.

“They’re falling through the cracks because they don’t have the means,” she said. “It’s very concerning to us.”

Lorel Trumier, director of education with the Prince Albert Catholic School Division, said cutting the partnership was one of many difficult decisions the division made during this year’s budget discussions.

“There were some pretty tough decisions that had to be made,” Trumier said. “They did a great job supporting us in the past.”

Much of the work done by the in-school counsellors was simply referring students to other mental health programs, Trumier said. Now, she said, that duty falls on school division staff who have received special training in mental health first aid.

“It’s not ideal,” she said. “It’s always nice when you can have some students working with counsellors on site.”

Counselling services are still provided in Catholic high schools, she said, through a partnership with the local health region.

Trumier said the school division is pressing the provincial government to increase funding for students’ mental health, and will continue to do so. Trumier said she would like to see the partnership restored, and invited any concerned parents to contact her directly with any questions.

 

–With files from Tyler Marr

Taylor.macpherson@jpbg.ca

On Twitter: @TMacPhersonNews