Better Mental Health Can Reduce Gun Violence in Schools. Do We Have the Will to Promote It? Part 2 (Ep. 31)

09/11/24 • 26 min

Courageous Conversations About Our Schools

One day after interviewing clinical psychologist Hayley Watson for Part 1 of this two-part series about the need for better mental health support in schools, Colt Gray, a 14-year-old student at Apalachee High School in Winder, Georgia walked onto campus with a military-style rifle and killed two other students and two math teachers. He also injured at least 8 others before he was taken into custody.

According to the shooter’s aunt Annie Brown, had been “begging for help from everyone around him.” Colt’s father, who has now been charged with several serious crimes, said that his son was “getting picked on at school,” and that other students “just ridiculed him day after day after day.”

Key takeaways from my conversation with Dr. Watson:

The need to understand the shooter's perspective and the factors that may have contributed to his actions, rather than simply labeling him as "evil."
The lack of adequate mental health resources and support for students who are struggling, and the importance of preventative measures such as teaching coping skills and promoting social-emotional learning.
The trauma experienced (not just in Georgia but across the country) by the entire school community, including students, teachers, and families, and the need to provide spaces for processing and healing.
The importance of ongoing conversations and emotional support, rather than focusing exclusively on security measures or avoiding the issue altogether.

Let us know what you think with a text message.

Key takeaways from my conversation with Dr. Watson:

The need to understand the shooter's perspective and the factors that may have contributed to his actions, rather than simply labeling him as "evil."
The lack of adequate mental health resources and support for students who are struggling, and the importance of preventative measures such as teaching coping skills and promoting social-emotional learning.
The trauma experienced (not just in Georgia but across the country) by the entire school community, including students, teachers, and families, and the need to provide spaces for processing and healing.
The importance of ongoing conversations and emotional support, rather than focusing exclusively on security measures or avoiding the issue altogether.

Let us know what you think with a text message.

Previous Episode

Better Mental Health Can Reduce Gun Violence in Schools. Do We Have the Will to Promote It? Part 1 (Ep. 30)

Immediately following the fatal shooting of two students and two math teachers at Apalachee High School in Georgia, the predictable debate over gun laws ensued. Less prominent were calls for another remedy for school gun violence that can have an immediate impact and, surprisingly, is not politically polarizing: mental health support.
Colt Gray, the 14-year-old shooter had been “begging for help from everyone around him,” according to his aunt Annie Brown. It appears he was unable to find it.
Unfortunately, students like Gray are not alone. As the need for students’ mental health support has grown, mental health services in schools have declined sharply in recent years. Just 48 percent of the nation’s public schools report that they can meet their students’ mental health needs, according to a recent EdWeek report.

My guest for this episode is Dr. Hayley Watson, a clinical psychologist with deep and personal knowledge of the mental health challenges students face. In this, the first of two episodes with Dr. Watson, she describes some of the factors, including bullying, that contribute to poor mental health, the effects it can have on student well-being and academic performance, and the skills that students can learn to better cope with emotionally challenging situations.

Dr. Watson also shares the harrowing story from her own childhood that led to trauma that she kept secret for many years. This story ultimately instilled a passion for helping young people facing similar experiences.

The school shooting at Apalachee High School occurred just one day after I recorded this interview. Dr. Watson joined me again for a follow-up conversation just a few days later to talk, specifically, about what educators can do to prevent gun violence and how they can help students, families, and their colleagues cope with the fear and the trauma so many across the country are feeling in the wake of this unspeakable tragedy.

Let us know what you think with a text message.

Next Episode

Meet Aaron Stark - Almost a School Shooter (Ep. 32)

Ever wonder what goes on in the mind of a school shooter? Or, why someone chooses to kill innocent people? My guest, Aaron Stark, was ready to commit mass murder but decided, at the last minute, not to follow through with his plan. He also chose not to kill himself. In this episode, you’ll hear Aaron’s harrowing story of abuse, neglect, and trauma, and you’ll find out what it took to prevent yet another tragedy that would have contributed to America’s epidemic of gun violence. There’s no doubt that mental health services are a vital part of the solution, but in Aaron’s case, it was a friend who extended kindness and compassion - someone who saw Aaron as “a good person with a crap life” - that made the difference.

So many questions to ponder. Here’s one for educators: In these hyper-polarized times when it’s so easy (and perversely rewarding) to bully others on social media, what will it take to get people to treat others, especially those who are struggling, with kindness rather than cruelty? Tune in to hear Aaron’s harrowing story and what he thinks will make a difference.

Here’s a clue: Convince people “to give love to the ones that you think deserve it the least because they need it the most.”

Let us know what you think with a text message.