Hidalgo County is partnering up with a counseling organization to address the mental wellness of local students in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Hidalgo County Judge Richard F. Cortez and officials with the Hope Family Health Center met with superintendents of county school districts to announce the partnership.

According to a news release $60,000 in American Rescue Funds will go toward the center to “strengthen the skills of mental health professionals in Hidalgo County in order to address the trauma of the COVID-19 pandemic for individuals.”

Fifty school counselors have already registered to be part of the program.

“We are beginning to see a lot of hard evidence that suggests the mental well-being of students, in particular, suffered tremendously because of the COVID pandemic,” Cortez said. “In 2021, more than one-third of high school students reported that they had experienced poor mental health during the pandemic, and 44% reported they persistently felt sad or hopeless during the past year. This partnership is aimed at addressing the mental health of our students.”

The counselors will be trained over six days. The first session begins next week.

The following school districts are participating in the program:

• • Hidalgo ISD
• • La villa ISD
• • Monte Alto ISD
• • Progreso ISD
• • South Texas ISD
• • Edcouch-Elsa ISD
• • Mercedes ISD
• • Valley view ISD
• • Donna ISD
• • Mission CISD
• • Sharyland ISD
• • McAllen ISD
• • Weslaco ISD
• • La Joya ISD
• • Edinburg CISD
• • PSJA ISD