Seattle Student Union says $2M telehealth plan isn't enough

Parents and students in Seattle are still reeling from the shooting at Garfield High School that left one teenager dead earlier this month.

One student group — the Seattle Student Union — has been advocating for gun control for years. It now wants Mayor Bruce Harrell to spend a projected $20 million dollars in tax revenue the city promised at the end of last year for mental health support in schools . It's not satisfied with his latest announcement of $2.4 million for telehealth therapy services .

Harrell's office said the city began collecting the tax revenue at the beginning of this year, and said it requires action from the city council to spend. Because there's a nationwide shortage of mental health workers, telehealth is the best immediate option for culturally appropriate care that will reach more than 2,000 students, said Callie Craighead, a spokesperson for the mayor.

The city also plans to station police officers outside Garfield High School and expand patrols in the surrounding neighborhood through the end of the school year.

KNKX reporter Lilly Ana Fowler asked one of the group's founders to explain why the Union was formed and what its ambitions are moving forward:

Natalya McConnell is a senior at Franklin High School in Seattle and one of the founders of the Seattle Student Union.

Produced with assistance from the Public Media Journalists Association Editor Corps funded by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, a private corporation funded by the American people.