One year ago, Congress defunded public media. Now that we're 100% community funded, please become a sustaining member or increase your existing membership today.
LAUSD Opens Hotline To Help ‘Manage Fear, Anxiety And Other Challenges Related To COVID-19’
(Photo by Chrishna/Flickr CC)
Starting today, the Los Angeles Unified School District is adding another resource for the school community while campuses are closed: a hotline “students and families can call for help to manage fear, anxiety and other challenges related to COVID-19.”
The phone number is (213) 241-3840. That’s also the number for the district’s Student Health & Human Services division.
According to a district press release, “counselors and mental health professionals” will answer calls at that number from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Friday, in both English and Spanish.
Los Angeles Unified Launches Mental Health Hotline To Help Students and Families - Their world has been turned upside down and we need to make sure students have the support they need. https://t.co/GGMliXdPAF pic.twitter.com/vUDkj4L4PQ
— Austin Beutner (@AustinLASchools) April 1, 2020
According to a message from LAUSD board member Jackie Goldberg, the hotline will take calls during spring break, too. Spring break starts on Monday, April 6 and goes until April 10.
“EVERYONE is under stress,” Goldberg wrote. “There is NO shame in asking for help if you need it! We all need to be physically and mentally healthy and strong to get through this.”
“The absence from school creates hardship – loss of stability and friendships, loss of learning and loss of a big part of our students’ social safety net,” Superintendent Austin Beutner wrote in the press release.
Sponsored message
MORE HELP:
- Families can call (213) 443-1300 for help with things like how to get a device for distance learning
- Employees can call (213) 241-2700
- Both hotlines are staffed Monday-Saturday
SOME STRAIGHT TALK ABOUT COVID-19
We're all living through this extraordinary and frightening pandemic. The vast majority of our newsroom has been working from home (here's some advice on that) since March 11 to bring you calm, helpful reporting. We are answering your questions and taking more.
We're here to help. And if you can help support that effort financially, we'd be grateful.
One year ago, Congress voted to defund public media, eliminating a critical $1.7 million from our budget every year going forward. But they couldn’t silence us, and we’re not going anywhere. LAist is now 100% community funded and that means we’re taking our future into our own hands and turning to you to keep local reporting strong.
You come to LAist because you want independent reporting and trustworthy local information. Our nonprofit newsroom doesn’t answer to shareholders looking to turn a profit. Instead, we answer to you and our communities. We are free to follow facts wherever they lead and to hold power to account without fear or favor. Our only loyalty is to our readers and listeners and our mission: to inform, engage, and strengthen Southern California’s communities.
If this story helped you, please become a monthly member today to help sustain this mission. It just takes 1 minute to donate below.
You come to LAist because you want independent reporting and trustworthy local information. Our nonprofit newsroom doesn’t answer to shareholders looking to turn a profit. Instead, we answer to you and our communities. We are free to follow facts wherever they lead and to hold power to account without fear or favor. Our only loyalty is to our readers and listeners and our mission: to inform, engage, and strengthen Southern California’s communities.
If this story helped you, please become a monthly member today to help sustain this mission. It just takes 1 minute to donate below.
Senior Vice President News, Editor in Chief
