Civil Municipal - June 2024

While the district has made notable progress, Culpepper says challenges remain in the area of mental health support. He notes that Lanier County Schools has one school social worker and collaborates with local health organization Legacy, but the need for more comprehensive mental health services is real. “We struggle to see enough mental health counseling for the families and students. There’s also the hurdle of resistance to those services,” he admits. “We have this year added the opportunity for behavioral telehealth services. We started that back in the fall, to add one more layer of support for our students and families on campus without them having to drive 20 miles to Valdosta or a neighboring community. We do have counselors, but they’re too few. And the services that we see, they need to be 197 CIVIL AND MUNICIPAL VOLUME 05, ISSUE 06 LANIER COUNTY SCHOOL DISTRICT