As mental health initiatives become increasingly prevalent in schools, the Yuba County Office of Education (YCOE) is committed to promoting the health of students in our region through community partnerships.
Lyndhurst High School’s Blazer Support Center, a wellness hub for students and their families, is the result of a collaboration between YCOE, Marysville Unified School District, Yuba County Department of Health and Human Services, and Peach Tree Health, providing clinical behavioral health services doing.
Students and families can schedule sessions with our team of professionals, including a full-time therapist, part-time therapist, and two part-time social workers. When not attending sessions, students can also use the support center as a mental break by participating in mindful activities to relieve stress. White noise and soft music will be played during student lessons to increase privacy. The center has also been providing therapy dogs since March 2023.
Marysville Joint Unified hosts several wellness centers throughout the district, but the Blazer Support Center is currently the only wellness hub offering clinical support. YCOE Wellness Director Huma Kariki said the hub was created after the Department of Health and Human Services determined the surrounding area was a “high-need area” for mental health resources.
“We also surveyed students and parents, and all responses reflected behavioral health needs. That’s how this project was born. What are the areas of greatest need?” Hariki said.
According to data collected through these surveys and counselor referrals, anxiety, depression, and family relationship issues were some of the most common mental health needs among visitors. The support center has recorded a total of 2,625 visits from its opening in January 2023 to May of the same year. The Appeal previously reported that from August 2023 to January 31 this year, the wellness hub recorded a total of 1,011 visits among 421 unique visitors.
“We wanted to make sure that we were designing a program that met the needs. When we talk about expanding or replicating the model in other high schools or communities, this one meets the needs of this local context. They should not look the same because they are specifically designed to do so,” said Deputy Superintendent Bobby Abold.
Through our Support Centers, YCOE and its partners reduce the severity of mental illness by improving timely access to services, outreach, and reducing cultural stigma associated with mental illness and help-seeking. We aim to address this before. Hariki said plans for the Yuba Gardens site are progressing well, with additional wellness hubs planned for Yuba Gardens Intermediate School and Cedar Lane Elementary School.
“For our intermediate schools, (the data) doesn’t seem to have changed that much. There’s a lot of anxiety and depression, and a lot of that is post-COVID. We’re seeing that isolation and high levels of anxiety. We’ve seen a lot. We want to accurately reflect what we’re doing at the center to meet the needs of our students, so as we’re halfway through the year, we’re looking to get an idea of how our students are doing right now. “We will be surveying students again at Yubaen in 2020,” she said. she said.
Lyndhurst High School’s mental health team strives to connect with students on campus and address their needs on a one-on-one basis. Prevention experts like Samantha Duarte are seen as reliable support for students who need a listening ear.
“Oftentimes, kids don’t necessarily come here for therapeutic support; they just want to come here to vent or take advantage of a 15-minute break. They usually come in because they’re having a bad day. …Often children just feel safe having someone who will listen to them. Sometimes they really want to talk, and sometimes they just want to talk about school. Sometimes it’s just drama going on in relationships. Just knowing that you were able to come and talk to someone and someone would listen or give you a little bit of advice will make you feel safer next time. It makes you feel good about coming to the store. … It’s a nice, warm feeling knowing that the kids feel comfortable with you,” Duarte said.
Abold said YCOE is engaged in a strategic planning process to identify priority areas for expanding health and mental health support.
“The more people that know about the work that we actually do, the more opportunities we have to do more in the community,” Abold said. “We want our children to thrive, and we know they carry a lot of baggage. If we can break down those barriers, they can They will go to school, find a way to become productive citizens, and be happy.”
