08/24/2025
HCHSD and SMHSD Statement on the Hamilton County School Board cutting mental health services
At Thursday’s School Board meeting, the Hamilton County School Board voted to cut mental health services provided by Centerstone Community Mental Health. Centerstone provided TennCare- and private insurance-covered mental health services in schools to Hamilton County Students.
The HCHSD and SMHSD are deeply disappointed and outraged by the actions of our School Board on Thursday night. On the day a shooting threat put multiple HCDE Schools on lockdown and confronted many students with fears for themselves, their families, and their friends, the School Board took away a key resource that would have inevitably helped kids handle the trauma from that event.
We extend our gratitude to School Board Members Felice Hadden (R-Ooltewah), Jackie Thomas (D-Chattanooga), Jill Black (D-Chattanooga), Ben Connor (D-Chattanooga), and Karitsa Jones (D-Chattanooga) for supporting critical mental health services in our schools.
The reasons for this cut seem extremely political. School Board Member Ben Daughtery (R-Signal Mountain) said that he was concerned about not knowing the beliefs and ideologies of the counselors. The Hamilton County Moms for Liberty (an extremely right-wing ideological organization in and of itself) praised the School Board’s actions. This seems to be a deliberate attack on counselors who intend to support all students, especially those who are LGBTQIA+, especially given that Centerstone provides resources for LGBTQIA+ people, who are one of the most at-risk populations in the country when it comes to mental health crises. Mental health resources should support all of our students, regardless of their identity, and should not be politicized to score partisan points.
The School Board’s actions take critical, life-saving resources from all children, regardless of whether or not they are LGBTQIA+. It takes away resources that should be available at all times to serve kids in crisis. It also takes away the opportunity for kids to receive these critical services, because they can no longer receive them at school, and many families cannot take kids to a mental health provider after school, as School Board Member Jill Black pointed out during the meeting.
The HCHSD and SMHSD call on the School Board to act swiftly to rectify this glaring problem before kids suffer from a lack of mental health support. We call on all Hamilton County residents–especially our fellow students–to help hold the School Board accountable for their disastrous actions until they are rectified.
The next meeting of the Hamilton County School Board is September 18th, at 4:30. We ask that as many people as they can show up, speak out, and ask the School Board to quickly rectify this glaring problem and ensure all students have the support they need. We also ask that people email their School Board Members consistently until this issue is rectified, not just now, while it is the news. Consistent pressure will ensure that we bring back critical services for all students as soon as possible.
Anyone with questions on how to get involved should email us ([email protected]) or contact us on social media ().
