Maryland DH announces MH first aid training for historically Black colleges, universities.

The Maryland Department of Health (MDH) has launched Mental Health First Aid Training in Maryland's historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs). Announced in recognition of Mental Health Awareness Month, this initiative aims to train 20,000 students, faculty and staff members across four HBCUs — Bowie State University, Coppin State University, Morgan State University and University of Maryland Eastern Shore — during the next four years, as reported by https://www.Maryland.gov on May 10. In Maryland, 52% of Black high school students (ages 14 to 19) reported feeling significantly sadder and more hopeless in the past year compared with the statewide average of 36%, according to the 2021 Youth Pandemic Behavior Survey. In 2019, suicide was the third leading cause of death for Black Americans ages 15 to 24, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. This Mental Health First Aid training initiative, which MDH previously announced for Maryland's first responders, is being coordinated for Maryland HBCUs by the Mental Health Association of Maryland and MDH's Behavioral Health Administration with funding provided through the federal Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration's Mental Health block grant. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]