SALT LAKE CITY — If he wasn't already convinced of the need for more school counselors, Rep. Steve Eliason on Friday shared a recent personal experience that further drove home the point.

“I say this with some apprehension, but there’s a lot of troubled youths out there," Eliason, R-Sandy, told the Utah Legislature's House Education Committee. "Last night, my son sat in the hospital repeating over and over, ‘Why would someone do this to me?' as he was attacked by another student yesterday.

"He should be OK, but what’s going on in some children’s heads from adverse childhood experiences and other things is beyond comprehension," he said.

Eliason's remarks came at the conclusion of the committee's debate on HB223, which would appropriate $1 million in ongoing money to provide matching grants to Utah schools that hire elementary school counselors.

After an hour of discussion and public testimony, the committee voted unanimously to send the bill to the full House for consideration.

Eliason said there is a great need for schools to better support the social and emotional needs of children with the help of professionals in school settings.

Schools that have elementary counselors report fewer discipline referrals, improved attendance, and teachers have greater ease of staying on task with students if there are more professionals to assist children, school counselors and other educators told committee members.

One elementary school in the Tooele County School District experienced a sharp drop in discipline referrals after adding a school counselor to its faculty, said Marianne Oborn, the district's counseling director.

In 2013, the district received a federal grant to hire elementary school counselors. A counselor who joined one school in November suffered a heart attack in January and did not return to school until April. Even so, disciplinary referrals dropped by 17 percent, Oborn said.

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"We saw a 45 percent reduction the following year," she said.

Lillian Tsosie-Jensen, educational coordinator with the Utah State Board of Education, said the social and emotional needs of many students are immense.

"We know that our youth, age 10-17, the leading cause of death is suicide," she said. "So as we look at the data, we definitely know our students are in crisis and how can we best support them so that they can be not only life ready but also academically ready."

The bill is supported by the State School Board, which had identified it as a priority, said deputy superintendent Angela Stallings.

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