Date of Conferral

12-17-2025

Date of Award

December 2025

Degree

Ph.D.

School

Health Sciences

Advisor

Summer Parrott

Abstract

Approximately one in six youth ages 6 to 17 years old in the United States have a mental health disorder, such as depression and anxiety. Out of the 119,000 youth in Michigan in that age group, roughly 57.8% are not receiving proper mental health support services. Students are at school for a large majority of their day, so it is important that they have access to school-based services. The purpose of this basic qualitative study was to understand the perceptions of secondary education teachers in Wayne County, Michigan, on school-based mental health support services. Using the community level and the institutional level of the socio-ecological model helped to provide a framework to understand the impact that teachers feel mental health support services have on their students, and the impact that schools have on these resources. Ten virtual interviews were conducted with teachers in schools across Wayne County, Michigan. Data collection concluded when data saturation was reached after the 10 interviews. Thematic analysis revealed three overarching themes. The data revealed that secondary teachers in Wayne County perceive that the school-based mental health resources available to students are adequate. It was also shown that mental health resources contracted by the secondary schools from outside agencies are helpful to students. Finally, the data showed that barriers exist in the accessibility and availability of school-based mental health resources in Wayne County secondary schools. Identifying teachers’ perceptions of school-based mental health resources can lead to positive social change. Having teachers’ perceptions can show schools where changes need to be made to current resources and what additional resources are necessary to support students’ mental health needs.

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