In March of 2022, Jay Lu, a 15-year-old sophomore at Fayetteville-Manlius, ended his own life. In the days that followed, the Central New York suburban school was besieged by students, parents and the local community, all seeking answers to the same question: How could this happen? 

“Many kids came forward and talked about their own mental health problems, which the district has known would be an issue, and we knew would be an issue, during the pandemic,” said Mary Patroulis, Library media specialist at Fayetteville-Manlius High School and president of the Fayetteville-Manlius Teachers Association. “What became evident was that we had services in place, but people didn’t necessarily know about them.” 

The tragedy highlighted the gaps in the district’s safety plan, and it prompted the administrators to hire additional staff and be more proactive in communicating what mental health resources are available to students, teachers, and district families. 

“Sometimes it takes the community to remind us of where those gaps are,” Patroulis said.

From the Safe Schools For All Report: 

Recommendation for School Districts: Hire Dedicated Staff

School districts should hire new staff to serve as dedicated student support specialists whose primary responsibility is supporting the day-to-day school and student safety. Districts commonly employ specialists to support academic initiatives, such as curriculum coordinators and literacy coaches, but they rarely dedicate staff to coordinate and support the social-emotional needs of all students.