The Student Mental Health Crisis Isn’t Going Away. It’s Time to Act.
For years, schools have worked tirelessly to respond to what many believed was a temporary mental health crisis tied to the isolation and upheaval of the pandemic. Educators and families hoped that as classrooms reopened and routines returned, students would regain their footing.
But the latest data tells a different story.
According to eLuma’s 2025 State of Student Mental Health Report, the crisis hasn’t eased in the five years since COVID-19 shut down schools nationwide. Nearly six in ten school-based providers say student mental health has worsened over the past year, while only four percent report improvement. Anxiety, depression, and behavioral challenges continue to rise, shaping students’ ability to learn, connect, and thrive.
These findings make one thing clear: what we are facing is not a temporary setback. Schools are facing a long-term shift that demands immediate, coordinated, and sustained action.
Among those who have witnessed this shift firsthand is Kay Kelly, Mental Health Clinical Services Specialist for eLuma and an experienced licensed school psychologist. Kay has worked in school-based mental health for over a decade, providing direct services, consultation, and leadership to support students’ mental health needs. At eLuma, she supports districts and school-based providers nationwide in building systems that ensure students receive consistent, high-quality services.
Key Findings from the 2025 State of Student Mental Health Report
eLuma’s report surveys nearly 250+ school administrators, 100+ school-based mental health providers, and 125+ teachers across the United States. Their responses provide a detailed snapshot of what is happening in schools today, highlighting areas of progress, systemic breakdowns, and opportunities for improvement.
The data shows a system under immense pressure. Schools know what students need, but often struggle to deliver consistent mental health support. Providers report the same barriers year after year: insufficient staff, inconsistent coordination of care, and limited capacity to engage families effectively.
Administrators and teachers share this perspective. They recognize effective strategies such as caregiver engagement, professional development, and early screening, but most feel they lack the resources and infrastructure to implement them consistently.
A Crisis That Has Outlasted Its Labels
In 2020, discussions about student mental health focused on the immediate effects of the pandemic. Anxiety, isolation, and learning disruptions were seen as temporary setbacks.
Five years post-COVID, student mental health challenges have not only persisted but grown more complex. Researchers and practitioners now recognize the compounded effects of multiple factors, including increased social media exposure and the rise of simulated online relationships, both of which can influence how children and adolescents understand social connection and self-worth.
These influences, highlighted in the recent APA health advisory, interact with lingering anxiety, depression, and learning disruptions from the pandemic, creating a landscape where mental health struggles are deeper and more widespread than previously understood.
The evidence is clear: student mental health challenges are persistent and systemic. Patterns of anxiety, depression, and behavioral struggles are entrenched, and the consequences are compounding. Each year without action widens the gap between what schools know students need and what they can provide.
Kay Kelly has seen these changes unfold across school systems nationwide.
“Over time, we’ve seen more students struggling with mental health, and the age of impact keeps getting younger,” she says. “Each year, we’re seeing students face these challenges earlier, which makes the need for support even more urgent.”
This is not just a post-pandemic issue. It is a long-term and evolving challenge in school mental health services that requires sustained investment over temporary stopgaps.
What Educators and Providers See Every Day
Teachers, counselors, and school psychologists report increasing numbers of students struggling with anxiety, depression, ADHD, and other behavioral concerns. Providers note stress spikes during testing periods, extended breaks, and the start of the school year.
When mental health services are inconsistent, students lose trust, and progress stalls. Only 12 percent of providers describe school mental health supports as consistent and well-coordinated. For students, this means care often starts and stops without warning, leaving them without the stability they need to succeed academically and socially.
Kay emphasizes the impact of these interruptions:
“If a school community is already stretched, and a vital staff member leaves, those needs don’t disappear; they are delayed or reassigned, placing stress on often already at-capacity caseloads.”
To address this, schools must plan for long-term mental health support, providing structure and resources that meet students’ needs from the first day through the end of the school year and year after year.
At the same time, schools can move toward what Kay calls mental health 2.0: learning from past gaps, intervening early, and implementing robust, systematic strategies that allow students not just to receive support but to make meaningful, lasting progress.
Turning What Works Into What Lasts
The good news is that effective strategies already exist. The challenge isn’t knowing what works; it’s making what works sustainable.
Many schools have implemented promising initiatives to support student well-being, including mindfulness programs, cognitive-behavioral approaches, small-group counseling, and teacher-led check-ins.
But without consistent staffing, coordinated care, or reliable infrastructure, these efforts often lose momentum. When a key staff member leaves or funding runs out, services stall and student progress slows.
That’s where eLuma comes in.
eLuma partners with districts to build long-term capacity, not temporary fixes. Through online, hybrid, and on-site therapy services, as well as flexible staffing models and school-wide universal screening tools, schools can maintain continuity of care, reduce disruptions, and ensure every student receives the support they need, even when local resources are stretched thin.
Kay explains:
“A new referral is a significant milestone and transition; we want our staff to be in a place where they are ready to welcome this student and be part of a school community that prioritizes this as well.”
Our approach is rooted in collaboration. eLuma’s providers work as an extension of a district’s team, aligning with school goals, communication systems, and intervention plans.
This helps schools integrate support seamlessly into their existing structures, ensuring that mental health services are not only available but also consistent, coordinated, and effective.
Moving Forward Together
The data from eLuma’s 2025 report underscores an urgent truth: schools can’t afford to treat student mental health support as optional. It must be built into the foundation of how schools operate.
That starts with sustainable systems that:
- Expand capacity with qualified, school-based mental health providers
- Maintain continuity even during staffing shortages or absences
- Identify student needs early with universal screening
- Empower educators with consultation, data, and ongoing support
- Engage families as consistent partners in care
At eLuma, we help schools make that shift from reactive responses to proactive systems that ensure every student has consistent access to stable, high-quality care.
Kay Kelly notes:
“Students with access to ongoing support can develop protective factors, acquire coping skills, and gain a better sense of belonging when a community supports them.”
The student mental health crisis may not be new, but it’s not insurmountable. With the right partnerships and infrastructure, schools can create the stability students need to thrive and the support educators need to sustain it.
