Congresswoman Lee Announces $12 Million in Funding to Address Mental Health Care Shortage

Today, Congresswoman Susie Lee (NV-03) announced a nearly $12 million federal investment to address Nevada’s critical shortage of school psychologists and expand mental health services for students.

“In order to provide our students the quality mental health care they deserve, we need to hire and train more school psychologists,” said Congresswoman Susie Lee. “This $12 million investment will do just that — helping Nevada train more school psychologists and place them in the communities that need it most. These long-term investments in workforce training will pay dividends for our kids, ensuring they have access to the mental health care they need.”

The Nevada Department of Education’s Office of a Safe and Respectful Learning Environment (OSRLE) received a $7 million grant to increase the number of credentialed school psychologists employed in high-need schools, expand intensive and early intervention services, and establish sustainable statewide systems to recruit, train, and retain mental health providers. Over a four-year-period, the project will recruit, train, and retain at least 20 new school psychologists in high-need schools, aiming to improve the average student-to-provider ratio by 20% and maintain a 95% retention rate. This will directly expand access to tiered mental health supports for an estimated 7,800 Nevada students. In Nevada, there is currently only one school psychologist available for every 2,000 students.

Additionally, the Nevada Department of Education, in partnership with the Nevada System of Higher Education (NSHE), including the University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV), the University of Nevada, Reno (UNR), and Nevada State University (NSU), received $5 million in federal funding for a statewide initiative to address Nevada’s critical shortage of credentialed school psychologists in high-need and rural schools. This initiative will improve statewide coordination in the recruitment, placement, and retention of school psychologists. It will also strengthen Nevada’s higher education infrastructure to better support schools’ needs by expanding existing apprenticeship, accreditation, and recruitment programs at NSHE institutions. 

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