{"id":22,"date":"2026-05-11T17:38:15","date_gmt":"2026-05-11T17:38:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/northcarolinamovingjournal.com\/?p=22"},"modified":"2026-05-11T17:38:15","modified_gmt":"2026-05-11T17:38:15","slug":"high-school-athletic-association-backs-nc-bill-requiring-mental-health-training-for-coaches","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/northcarolinamovingjournal.com\/?p=22","title":{"rendered":"High school athletic association backs NC bill requiring mental health training for coaches"},"content":{"rendered":"
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This story mentions suicide. If you or someone you know is contemplating suicide, please call or text the National Suicide and Crisis Lifeline at 988.\u00a0<\/span><\/i><\/p>\n

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North Carolina middle and high school coaches could be required to complete mental health training under proposed legislation backed by the state high schoolathletic association.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Supporters say SB 550 is aimed at helping coaches recognize and respond to student mental health needs before they worsen.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThis is not about asking coaches to become counselors,\u201d said Sen. Caleb Theodros (D-Mecklenburg), a co-sponsor of the bill. \u201cIt is about making sure that they\u2019re not left guessing when a student needs help.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Theodros made the comments during a press conference on Thursday.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Suicide is now the <\/span>second<\/span> leading cause of death for children in North Carolina, and across the country, 1 in 7 youths ages 6 to 17 experience a <\/span>mental health<\/span> disorder each year.<\/span><\/p>\n

The bill, called the Coaches Care Act, requires coaches to complete mental health first aid training to help them recognize symptoms of mental health struggles and connect students to resources. It was introduced last year but did not move out of the Senate Rules Committee, though this week\u2019s backing from the North Carolina High School Athletic Association could help change that.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The organization voted 17-0 on Wednesday to support the measure.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThe unanimous vote to require mental health training for head coaches is a meaningful step forward for the students we serve,\u201d Commissioner Que Tucker said in a statement to NC Newsline.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

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Tucker said the organization worked with lawmakers and the Department of Instruction on the proposal. \u201cThe NCHSAA is grateful to be part of an effort that prioritizes the well-being of young people,\u201d she said.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cIt teaches you how to help others. It teaches you how to help yourself,\u201d said April Simpkins, a mental-health advocate and mother of three Division I athletes. Simpkins, who was at the legislature Thursday, lost her daughter, Cheslie Kryst, to suicide in 2022.<\/span><\/p>\n

Advocates from the North Carolina chapter of the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) also joined the press conference to show their support for the bill. <\/span>\u201cWe want our young adults to be able to come forward and be able to share that physical and mental health go hand in hand,\u201d said Lillian Davis, director of public policy for the group. \u201cWhen they need things, we want to be able to give them that support they need.\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

SB 550 remains in committee and will require Republican support to advance, but Theodros said the <\/span>NCHSAA<\/span> backing represents progress. <\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cThe next step will be to kind of regroup with those same Senate Republicans that voice support and have additional aid moving across the finish line.\u201d\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The North Carolina Coaches Association did not reply to a request for comment by press time.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

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