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U-M Depression Center launches new mental health education website for high schools
ANN ARBOR - The University of Michigan Depression Center has launched a new website designed to support educators of grades 8-12 in communicating with their students about mental health concerns, and in creating a classroom environment which promotes positive mental health.
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High School Teacher Sitting Outdoors With Students On Campus[/caption]
The new website, called Classroom Mental Health, was designed to fill a gap in the current landscape of online resources by 1) providing brief, environmental and action-based strategies that can help to create a classroom atmosphere beneficial to student mental health; 2) supporting communication and collaboration between school staff and the parents and families of students who may be struggling with mental health concerns; and 3) helping to facilitate the referral process for students in distress.
School-based professionals are in a unique position to notice distress and intervene with students, yet teachers are often overburdened with multiple competing demands and a lack of time. To this end, the Classroom Mental Health website aims to provide school staff with a variety of tools and resources which can be easily accessed and utilized within the context of a teacher's regular classroom routine. The website can also serve as an additional resource for existing school-based mental health and suicide prevention programs.
"It is our hope that this website will provide teachers, administrators, students and their families with information and resources which can help to reduce the stigma of mental illness, facilitate open discussion about these issues, encourage help-seeking behaviors when needed, and promote a healthier, more productive classroom environment," said Trish Meyer, EdM, Manager of Outreach and Education for the U-M Depression Center.
The Classroom Mental Health website is the result of a unique collaboration between the University of Michigan Depression Center and multiple partners, including the State of Wyoming Department of Education; Prevention Management Organization of Wyoming; Teton County School District; Gull Lake Community Schools in Gull Lake, MI; and the Ann Arbor Public Schools. Funding for the site was provided by a generous gift from the Peter and Susan Ordway Family Fund, with additional support from Dr. and Mrs. Richard Sugden of Jackson, WY.
Please visit our website at www.classroommentalhealth.org. For even more information about the site please contact: [email protected].
High School Teacher Sitting Outdoors With Students On Campus[/caption]
The new website, called Classroom Mental Health, was designed to fill a gap in the current landscape of online resources by 1) providing brief, environmental and action-based strategies that can help to create a classroom atmosphere beneficial to student mental health; 2) supporting communication and collaboration between school staff and the parents and families of students who may be struggling with mental health concerns; and 3) helping to facilitate the referral process for students in distress.
School-based professionals are in a unique position to notice distress and intervene with students, yet teachers are often overburdened with multiple competing demands and a lack of time. To this end, the Classroom Mental Health website aims to provide school staff with a variety of tools and resources which can be easily accessed and utilized within the context of a teacher's regular classroom routine. The website can also serve as an additional resource for existing school-based mental health and suicide prevention programs.
"It is our hope that this website will provide teachers, administrators, students and their families with information and resources which can help to reduce the stigma of mental illness, facilitate open discussion about these issues, encourage help-seeking behaviors when needed, and promote a healthier, more productive classroom environment," said Trish Meyer, EdM, Manager of Outreach and Education for the U-M Depression Center.
The Classroom Mental Health website is the result of a unique collaboration between the University of Michigan Depression Center and multiple partners, including the State of Wyoming Department of Education; Prevention Management Organization of Wyoming; Teton County School District; Gull Lake Community Schools in Gull Lake, MI; and the Ann Arbor Public Schools. Funding for the site was provided by a generous gift from the Peter and Susan Ordway Family Fund, with additional support from Dr. and Mrs. Richard Sugden of Jackson, WY.
Please visit our website at www.classroommentalhealth.org. For even more information about the site please contact: [email protected].