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PAGE 70 Students were concerned about their own mental health, expressing stress about the aforementioned pressures and loneliness, especially during the summer given a lack of accessible activities. One said “I’m mostly alone, I don’t really have anyone to talk to. It’s hard to find friends or list anyone to discuss anything with outside school.” For less acute mental health needs, some students named the Dublin and Livermore in-school wellness centers as a positive place to receive services. Others expressed an interest in an off-site community center with mental health services where parents are not involved, for more anonymity. For more advanced mental health needs, adult participants noted that there is a segment of the youth population falling through the cracks, specifically those who do not quite meet the need for crisis mental health services. One provider said: “That’s where I really see an acute mental health situation...a place for those individuals, especially youth to get some services, especially if they don’t meet the criteria for an emergency psychiatric detention. That’s really where I think that we’re seeing an increase.” This is compounded by insurance status, long wait lists for mental health services, and high out-of- pocket expenses. “I think with our youth, there’s a lot of pressure on them in Pleasanton to be successful. And a lot struggled with that. And when they get to a crisis point, there’s not a lot options for them. Again, if you have private insurance, you’re waiting for months to find somebody who will take new patients and then get an appointment. So there’s really not a lot of options to help them in the moment.” SUBSTANCE USE Students expressed frustration about the widespread substance use (smoking, vaping, drugs) in their schools. They were frustrated about how this directly affected them, primarily through reduced access to school bathrooms. They also voiced a need for substance education programs that reduce stigma. When youth were more broadly asked to identify factors that made them feel unsafe, several mentioned substance use among peers. When asked to describe one challenge youth were facing, one participant said, “I would say the drug culture because everyone knows where people go to smoke…you gotta stay out of this hallway during lunchtime because it’s going to smell like weed.” Substance use was also reflected as a concern by adult participants in each of the three communities. One stated: “There’s a lot of kids out here who are addicted to drugs, whether it’s prescription meds or meth, and smoking. It could be cigarettes, it could be anything. But the kids doing drugs here is an epidemic.” Bathrooms as a Human Right. Students were affected by substance use among peers in a variety of ways, but the frustration they most often expressed with the inability to use school bathrooms. Students spoke at length about experiences with peers smoking or using drugs in the bathroom, and how that often resulted in them not being able to use the bathroom during the school day. “Let’s be honest, the bathrooms are really scary. When you walk in you see you know what I’m talking about, you see those people, you see what they’re doing. And I dash out of there…I really don’t like that and I have to wait until I get home.” Students reported that the school’s response was often to make teachers clear out the bathrooms, or to close them altogether. “I could never find a bathroom that I can go in because all of them are closed because of drugs. I just want to use the bathroom.” “There are many, many, many issues with drug use in the bathrooms. And I think it’s very, very overlooked. Because I’ve been somebody who’s struggled with substance use, and people think it’s just like vaping and like weed and it’s not. And for schools to not have Narcan is a serious issue.” Substance Use Support and Treatment. Students desired more substance use programming, including education on prevention, and responsive programs for those using substances. Youth understood the complexity of substance use, and emphasized the need for non-stigmatizing services: EASTERN ALAMEDA COUNTY HUMAN SERVICES NEEDS ASSESSMENTSS Page 128 of 554