[INSERT HEADER OF ORGANIZATION]
INSTRUCTIONS: 
1.	Put this on your organization’s letterhead, adapt and edit as you see fit
2.	Go to: https://calegislation.lc.ca.gov/Advocates/ 
3.	Create an account if you do not already have one.
4.	Click on “Submit a Letter”
5.	Select a bill: SB 14
6.	Select recipient: Appropriations 
7.	Select Stance: Support, Subject SB 14, upload your letter, review, and submit. 
8.	Please send a copy of your letter to Sawait Seyoum sawait.seyoum@disabilityrightsca.org. Deadline to submit letters is April 2, 2021 

Honorable Anthony J. Portantino   
Chair, Senate Appropriations Committee  
State Capitol, Room 5050
Sacramento, CA 95814

RE: SUPPORT - SB 14 (Portantino/Low):  Pupil health: school employee and pupil training: excused absences: youth mental and behavioral health.

Dear Senator Portantino:  

I’m writing on behalf of [ORGANIZATION NAME AND SHORT DESCRIPTION OF ORGANIZATION] to share our SUPPORT OF SENATE BILL 14. [ORGANIZATION] is pleased to be among the coalition calling on the state to require the California Department of Education to use an evidence-based training program to train school employees. The bill will further include, as another type of required excused absence, an absence for the benefit of mental or behavioral health of the student, with parity to physical health excused absences. Young people and their wellbeing are at the forefront of our work and we see this bill as a vital step to ensuring that students’ mental health, especially in light of the COVID-19 pandemic, is recognized as a crucial component of their ability to thrive - in school and beyond. 

In research conducted by Born This Way Foundation, we have found that young people overwhelmingly care about their mental health with approximately nine in ten describing it as a priority. However, about half say they rarely or never talk about it with anyone in their lives – including peers, parents, or other adults. In order for that to change, we – as adults who care about the wellbeing of young people – need to do a better job understanding their mental health, recognizing the warning signs of crisis, and learning how to respond effectively. This is especially important for the educators who spend hours every day with youth and are uniquely positioned to identify students who might be struggling with a mental health issue.

Programs like Youth Mental Health First Aid teach educators, school personnel, and essential partners others who are in regular contact with youth to understand, identify, and respond to signs of mental health and substance use concerns, build understanding of their effects and how they manifest and provide an overview of common treatments and where to find them locally. Through role-playing and interactive exercises, the training provides participants with concrete, context-specific skills to assess a mental health crisis, provide initial help, and connect people to professional, peer, and social supports as well as self-help resources. Additionally, Teen Mental Health First Aid teaches high schoolers in grades 10-12 about common mental health and substance use challenges, what they can do to support their own mental health, and how to help a friend who is struggling. The training equips young people with the knowledge and skills they need to have supportive conversations and get a responsible and trusted adult to take over as necessary.

SB 14 is critically important given the current crisis in youth mental health in California. This bill provides students with an additional way to take initiative and care for their mental health without fear of further stigmatization and additionally provides adults with tools to support their students.

It is for these reasons that [ORGANIZATION] SUPPORT SB 14. 

Sincerely,
[Insert name, title, affiliation]