Students gathered in Lansing Tuesday to ask state legislators to make schools safer, but not by arming teachers. They want law makers to fund mental health services.
Over 150 middle and high school students from across Michigan are taking part in the School-Community Health Alliance of Michigan's Youth Advocacy Day.
It's happening from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. at the Central United Methodist Church in downtown Lansing.
"Safety means that you can be in an environment that you are able to be confident, and learn without worrying about your safety," said Cole Harger, a student from Oakridge Public Schools in Muskegon, "Mental health makes schools safer by being able to see dangerous signs that something might not be right."
They hope to get across why they feel mental health is a key component to school safety.
The students making the trip represent school-based health centers located across the state. There are over 120 of these centers which offer a range of medical, mental, and dental care services to students.
"The number one request we hear from our centers is to increase mental health services in their schools," said Debra Brinson, Interim Executive Director of School-Community Health Alliance of Michigan, "Our centers have told us that mental health services are crucial to creating a safe school environment where kids are ready to learn."
