Giving Compass' Take:

• Mattie Quinn reports that state and local funding has created a dearth of school counselors to help students with their problems. This is crucial as many students are going through trauma while dealing with the aftermath of natural disasters and school shootings. 

• Can philanthropists offer additional support for students outside of school?

• Indiana received education grants specifically to bring in more school counselors. Can this be done in other states? 

Janine Menard is just one person, but as a school counselor, she's responsible for the well-being of 1,300 students. Because of this ratio, she says she missed the signs of a "good student" who committed suicide. Janine Menard is just one person, but as a school counselor, she's responsible for the well-being of 1,300 students. Because of this ratio, she says she missed the signs of a "good student" who committed suicide.

Arizona has 924 students for every school counselor -- the highest ratio in the country. The nationwide average is 482 to 1, almost double what the American School Counselor Association recommends, which is 250 students for every counselor.

According to Jill Cook, assistant director of the American School Counselor Association, “it’s mostly a state and local funding issue.”

The decrease in money and resources comes at a time when advocates say the need for mental health care in schools is greater than ever. A changing climate is causing unprecedented natural disasters, leaving students suddenly homeless. An increase in school shootings has led to a nationwide push for gun control, led by students who say they are scared to go to school. Perhaps no place exemplifies this more than Puerto Rico, where residents will likely be reeling from the mental health effects of Hurricanes Maria and Irma for years to come.

Since Maria, calls to the suicide hotline -- some from children -- have tripled, according to a report from Puerto Rico’s Commission for Suicide Prevention.

After the mass school shooting in Parkland, Fla., earlier this year, Menard, the school counselor from Arizona, says some students flagged her down, wanting to talk about the tragedy. “How do you develop rapport with 1,300 kids? You don’t, you’re triaging. If a kid comes to school with trauma, it falls on the teacher to deal with it, and they are already under-compensated and stressed,” says Menard.

Read the full article about school counselors by Mattie Quinn at Governing Magazine.