Emerging from the COVID-19 pandemic, foundations, nonprofits, and practitioners in the public health space have noted the alarming rise of a mental health crisis among youth nationwide, with children and young adults expressing high levels of depression, dissociative behavior, and suicidal ideation, among other mental health challenges. 

Economic stress, social isolation, and fear of violence already present before the pandemic began in 2020 appear to have been accelerated and reified by the tumult of the last three years. In its annual KIDS COUNT report (50 pages, PDF), the Annie E. Casey Foundation found a 25.5 percent increase in children exhibiting mental health issues such as anxiety and depression between 2016 and 2020, with Hispanic/Latinx children seeing a 44 percentage increase from 8.1 percent to 11.7 percent and similar figures for LGBTQ youth who identified a lack of access and acceptance as critical obstacles to seeking care.

Moreover, an “alarmingly high” number of high school-age children are reported to have attempted suicide in the past year. According to data from the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) included in the KIDS COUNT report, 9 percent of high schoolers overall attempted suicide, while the percentage was even higher among Black students (12 percent), those identifying as multiracial (13 percent), and American Indian or Alaska Native students (26 percent). 

The mental health crises among children and young adults are not new—from 2009 to 2017, depression spiked 69 percent among 16- and 17-year-olds, the Week reported, noting a study from the CDC, which found the share of high school students feeling "persistent feelings of sadness or hopelessness" rose from 26 percent to 44 percent—the highest level ever recorded.

Foundations and philanthropists have taken note and continued a trend toward funding intervention strategies. In February, MacKenzie Scott awarded $15 million to the Jed Foundation to expand its mental health and suicide prevention programs to reach 12 million children, including 1.2 million high school students. According to the foundation, three out of 10 young adults experienced a mental illness in 2020—an increase of more than 42 percent since 2011—but more than half received no care. 

“By directing funding to organizations and programs that support mental health in schools, other youth-serving organizations, and communities, philanthropists can support preventative measures through the creation of mental health safety nets where young people are,” wrote Jed Foundation CEO John MacPhee in a commentary. “Such efforts help equip young people to navigate mental health challenges for themselves or a friend and increase the chances that someone in distress will be noticed and assisted in obtaining the care they need.” 

Looking to better understand the neurobiology of suicide and how it can be prevented, a $25 million gift to the University of North Carolina (UNC) from William and Dana Starling, who lost both their sons to suicide, highlights the efforts to link science with mental health practice. The gift establishing the UNC Suicide Prevention Institute will enable investigators to research the causation and neurobiology of suicide and develop and implement tools for clinical prevention, outreach, community engagement, and dissemination. “The goal is that we will be able to develop both ways of predicting and clinical interventions—this is a partnership with scientists, psychiatrists, and clinical teams using the resources of UNC Health to bring that together to identify who is at risk and clinically intervene to change outcomes,” said Samantha Meltzer-Brody, the Assad Meymandi Distinguished Professor and chair of the Department of Psychiatry at UNC. 

Also embracing philanthropy to navigate personal tragedy, in 2021, the Yabuki Family Foundation directed a $20 million gift to Children's Wisconsin hospital and healthcare system in Milwaukee to fund the expansion of integrated mental and behavioral health care and enable therapists to work alongside pediatricians in primary care and urgent care settings. "Out of tragedy comes opportunity," said foundation founder Jeff Yabuki, who lost his brother to suicide. “We intend to significantly advance the manner in which mental and behavioral health issues in children are diagnosed, reduce the stigma, and enable care—when needed—to be delivered in a fully integrated way.” 

Last year, 38 states enacted laws designed to improve school mental health resources, prevent suicides, and promote mental wellness among young people, according to the Week. In October, the Biden administration announced $314 million in mental health funding, as part of the bipartisan anti-gun violence law passed this summer by Congress. Quoting Candice Odgers, a psychologist at the University of California, Irvine, the Week noted: “We need to figure it out, because it’s life-or-death for these kids." 

With a longer view toward understanding the broader mechanisms that affect mental health as well as toward preparing the next generation of mental health professionals, the University of Oregon launched the Ballmer Institute for Children’s Behavioral Health, funded by a $425 million gift from Ballmer Group. The institute aims to graduate at least 200 behavioral health practitioners annually to expand and improve Oregon’s delivery of intervention and treatment programs for children. “The need for behavioral health services across our country is at critical levels,” said Ballmer Group co-founder Connie Ballmer. “And there is an opportunity to strengthen and enhance the behavioral health system so that it is set up to address every child’s needs—now and in the future.”

Daniel X Matz is contributing editor at Philanthropy News Digest.

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