Mental Health, COVID Top Safety Concerns in Education

Across K-12 schools and higher education, student mental health is vying with COVID-19 safety measures as the top concern for the 2022–2023 school year.

According to research from Rave Mobile Safety, student mental health ranked No. 1 among K–12 education professionals, with 61% of respondents citing it as one of their top concerns. The No. 2 spot was a tie between faculty and staff mental health and COVID-19 safety measures, with 52% of respondents citing each as a top concern.

That contrasts fairly dramatically with findings on the higher ed side, where COVID-related safety measures came easily in first place, with 71% of college/university respondents citing it as a top concern.

Compared with a year ago, a majority (59%) are more concerned than before about the state of students' mental health, with about half of those "much more concerned."

Even more, 72%, are more concerned about staff and faculty mental health than they were a year ago, with most of those "much more concerned."

The report, Crisis Communication and Safety in Education Survey: Concerns, Challenges & Planning for the 2022–2023 School Year, involved responses from more than 800 K–12 and higher education professionals in "administration, emergency management, facilities and operations, IT services, marketing and communications, safety and security and student services."

Among other major safety concerns for the coming school year were:

  • Maintaining staff at 51%;
  • Bullying or cyberbullying at 41%;
  • Physical health of students and faculty and staff at 31% each;
  • Active assailants at 26%;
  • Crime at 23%; and
  • Severe weather at 21%.

As far as addressing these concerns, the study found that 43% will increase investment in mental health resources. (Surprisingly, exactly half of respondents said they already have enough resources to support students, and 42% said they have enough to support staff and faculty.) Other measures respondents said they expect to implement included:

  • Increasing availability of health and wellness resources (40%);
  • Increased investment in COVID-related safety resources (33%);
  • Increased spending on safety/security staff, including police (29%);
  • Daily checks for health for students (28%) and staff (27%);
  • Increased investment in security-related technology (20%); and
  • Increased spending on "physical hardening," such as bullet-proof glass (16%).

Details on the report can be found on Rave Mobile Safety's site.

About the Author

David Nagel is the former editorial director of 1105 Media's Education Group and editor-in-chief of THE Journal, STEAM Universe, and Spaces4Learning. A 30-year publishing veteran, Nagel has led or contributed to dozens of technology, art, marketing, media, and business publications.

He can be reached at [email protected]. You can also connect with him on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/in/davidrnagel/ .


Featured

  • abstract pattern of shapes, arrows and circuit lines

    Internet2 Announces a New President and CEO to Step Up in October

    Internet2, the member-driven nonprofit offering advanced network technology services and cyberinfrastructure to the research and education community has completed its search, which began this past May, for a new president and CEO to take the helm.

  • shield with an AI microchip emblem hovering above stacks of gold coins

    AI Security Spend Surges While Traditional Security Budgets Shrink

    A new Thales report reveals that while enterprises are pouring resources into AI-specific protections, only 8% are encrypting the majority of their sensitive cloud data — leaving critical assets exposed even as AI-driven threats escalate and traditional security budgets shrink.

  • stack of gold coins disintegrates into digital particles against a dark circuit-board background with glowing AI imagery

    MIT Report: Most Organizations See No Business Return on Gen AI Investments

    A recent report out of the MIT Media Lab found that despite $30-40 billion in enterprise spending on generative AI, 95% of organizations are seeing no business return.

  • young man in a denim jacket scans his phone at a card reader outside a modern glass building

    Colleges Roll Out Mobile Credential Technology

    Allegion US has announced a partnership with Florida Institute of Technology (FIT) and Denison College, in conjunction with Transact + CBORD, to install mobile credential technologies campuswide. Implementing Mobile Student ID into Apple Wallet and Google Wallet will allow students access to campus facilities, amenities, and residence halls using just their phones.