ITHACA, NY (WSKG) - There's a mental health crisis in Yates County, and a school superintendent adds her students can’t get the services they need. Dundee Central School superintendent Kelly Houck says mental health is decreasing while she sees the need for them increasing.
In a recent email to state and federal lawmakers, Houck described the steps families must go through to get ongoing care as “ridiculous”.
"Even if there’s something available", Houck says "by the time we get through the intake process and the referrals and everything else it can be up to 10 months before a family starts receiving services."
In the meantime, the superintendent says students come to school everyday in a state of crisis, a potential danger to themselves and others.
Houck says all levels of government have a role to play in solving the problem. On February 26 she and others in Yates county will meet with an official from the New York office of mental health services.