Mandatory Mental Health Screenings Mental illness affects a large portion of the population. On behalf of the American Psychological Association, one writer notes that before the age of eighteen nearly a fourth of all young persons will deal with mental illness (Shirk and Jungbluth 217). Of these children only around a third will receive treatment (qtd. in Shirk and Jungbluth 222). Because of this it is crucial that mental health services are readily available to our youth. Even though some fear it could be overly invasive, schools should administer mandatory mental health screenings because mental illness can affect academic performance, it usually has an onset in adolescence, and the majority of young persons that commit suicide have a…show more content… This concern is valid, however, requiring all students to be assessed does not mean the data must be shared. One author, involved in the psychology department at the University of Denver, proposes that though privacy is is important to consider, mental health screenings provide young persons with the opportunity to receive diagnosis and treatment that would otherwise not have those resources available to them (Shirk and Jungbluth 222). Considering how many students will struggle with mental illness and the devastating effects these illnesses can cause providing diagnosis and the resources to seek treatment could be life altering for many. Because of the stigma surrounding mental illness, making mental health screenings mandatory is the only way that many children would ever be provided the opportunity to be diagnosed. Perhaps one of the largest issues surrounding mental illness is that often the battle is internal rather than external. When children act out in school it is the common assumption that something is wrong and someone needs to take action. But what about the youth who are academically successful high achieving students that later go on to commit suicide? Schools place a large focus on external disorders such as hearing and vision loss. By providing mental health screenings schools’ would be taking a huge step toward improving