Mental Health Funds Frozen
At the Escambia Children’s Trust board meeting on July 8, Escambia Superintendent of Schools Keith Leonard shared he received bad news from theTrump administration.
“Currently, the mental health allocation for your school district is frozen by the federal government,” Superintendent Leonard stated. “So yeah, in three business days, your school district was told that it was going to be minus $4.6 million.”
He added, “Those were three bad business days, but it is critical that we continue to strive and do the things that we can as a community and work together like we’ve been doing. And I’m very confident that we will continue to do so.”
Federal Freeze
In May, the Trump administration announced it would stop paying out $1 billion in federal grants that school districts across the country have been using to hire mental health professionals, including counselors and social workers. Why? The administration cited conflicts with its policy priorities, especially regarding diversity and equity initiatives.
- Dig Deeper: The Bipartisan Safer Communities Act allocated School-Based Mental Health Grants after the Uvalde school shooting, enabling school districts nationwide to hire and train mental health professionals, including counselors and social workers.
Under Contract?
During the joint meeting of the City of Pensacola and Escambia County officials on July 10, Commissioner Lumon May hinted that two properties near the Pensacola Bay Center have attracted potential buyers.
- “If we continue to move forward with this, I think the private dollars are coming,” said Commissioner May. “I mean, I know that there are people who are looking at the Tech Park (on Ninth Avenue between the Interstate 110 offramp and Aragon) and the Grand Hotel (also known as the “Crowne Plaza,” which has been closed since Hurricane Sally, September 2020). I think, the mayor’s aware as well. I don’t want to disclose it, but I think that’s happening.”
Stay Tuned
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