The District’s Dime Blog: Improving DC’s Grades on Children’s Mental Health

Executive Director Judith Sandalow writes a guest post for the DC Fiscal Policy Institute blog on the state of children’s mental health services in the District:

“Report card season is just around the corner – a time for parents to reflect on where their kids are doing well and where they need extra effort for a more successful year ahead. To ensure that all DC children can make progress, Children’s Law Center issues another kind of report card in the spring: one that grades the District government on how it is meeting the mental health needs of DC’s most vulnerable children.”

It’s not a coincidence that we link mental health to educational outcomes. Failing to help children with poor mental health places them at greater risk of dropping out of school, ending up in prison or worse.”