The city of Boston is spending $21 million to increase access to mental and behavioral health services and programs throughout the city.
The funding will support the Boston Public Health Commission and Boston Public Schools over five years, according to a March 20 news release. The money comes from federal funding and grants from the American Rescue Plan Act, the Education Department and the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration.
The funding will support more than 50,000 students and directly impact 21 BPS schools by adding behavioral health specialists to BPS schools and providing behavioral health training to youth-facing workers and community organizations.
The money will also be used to increase the diversity of the behavioral health workforce serving youth across Boston through career training, offering support to more than 600 people in pursuing behavioral health careers and providing more than 1,000 people with behavioral health training.