A bill sitting on Governor Jerry Brown’s desk attempts to address the long waits faced by students for counseling. If approved, Senate Bill 968 would require each University of California and California State University campus to have the equivalent of one, full time ‘mental health counselor’ for every 1,500 students.
Language in the bill claims one in four students has a diagnosable mental illness and that only 60 percent of students seek care.
If signed by the governor, the bill would take effect in 2020.
NSPR’s Sarah Bohannon talked to Mimi Bommersbach, a clinical psychologist at Chico State and the chair of the faculty committee for the California Faculty Association to find out more about SB 968 and why the CFA felt it was needed.