National Day of Social Action

Each year, Children’s Defense Fund (CDF) Freedom Schools® partners participate in the National Day of Social Action (NDSA), a collective organizing effort rooted in CDF’s mission to build community so that young people grow up with dignity, hope, and joy.

This year’s NDSA takes place on Wednesday, July 15, 2026.

The focus will be Children’s Defense Fund’s Children’s Health and Healing policy agenda item. This priority reflects a core belief—that mental health and social-emotional wellness are essential building blocks for overall health and directly shape children and youth’s ability to thrive.

This summer, thousands of CDF Freedom Schools K-12 scholars, families, and community partners will come together to answer a critical question: Are the children well?

Use the navigation tool below to find ways to stand with scholars as they call on their communities to protect vital services, build new partnerships like CDF Freedom Schools, and advance positive youth mental health outcomes in schools.

Explore the 2026 National Day of Social Action Resources

Children’s Voices

NDSA gives K-12 scholars the tools and platform to share their voices. This year, students can submit art on the NDSA topic to be featured at the June Ella Baker Child Policy Training Institute in Knoxville, TN.

2026 NDSA Toolkit

This toolkit helps CDF Freedom Schools sites and partners align local actions with the national NDSA movement, providing timelines, talking points, and engagement tips to run successful local events.

Download Toolkit

Community Teach-In Resources

These trauma-informed resources help K-12 students and families learn about mental health, social-emotional wellness, and taking action. Engage locally to plan your own event.

Locate a Site

Support a CDF Freedom Schools® Site

Find a local CDF Freedom Schools site or NDSA event to support. Join your community in protecting and expanding services for children and youth.

Support a Site

Contact Us

Have questions about the National Day of Social Action or CDF Freedom Schools? Contact our team to learn more and get connected.

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Policy Implications of this Topic

Cuts to SNAP and Medicaid in H.R.1 will negatively impact scholars’ mental health and social-emotional well-being in schools.

For many young people, public schools are the only accessible place to receive essential services like counseling, therapy, and health screenings. These cuts will disproportionately affect children from low-income families, children with disabilities, and those in rural communities.

To sustain these services and the professionals who provide them, school districts and states must act. That means exploring alternative funding strategies and strengthening advocacy efforts to offset federal losses.

Potential solutions include reallocating state education budgets, securing support from local governments and philanthropic partners, and building stronger partnerships with local health providers and community-based organizations.

Our Call to Action

Our children deserve better—and the data proves it. In the United States:

  • Investing in mental health and social-emotional wellness ensures that every child, regardless of their background, can thrive. 
  • The mental health status of young people, a growing concern identified by several federal agencies, including the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), has seen a consistent decline since the pandemic.
  • In 2021, more than 4 in 10 (42%) students felt persistently sad or hopeless, and nearly one-third (29%) experienced poor mental health.
  • Black students who experienced intense feelings of hopelessness or persistent sadness were more likely than their White peers to not have been diagnosed with a mental illness.
  • Nearly 40% of children who receive mental health services receive them at school, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Research from the National Association of School Psychologists shows that early mental health intervention significantly reduces disciplinary incidents, chronic absenteeism, and academic decline. 
  • In a nationwide survey of school district leaders, 86% use Medicaid funding to pay school health staff like psychologists and nurses, 59% use it specifically for mental and behavioral health services, 70% say cuts would reduce mental health services for students, 80% expect layoffs of school health staff.

The data is clear. As a nation, we can and must do better. Limited access to mental health support and pathways for social-emotional wellness enrollment creates barriers that may prevent youth from thriving.