Manual offers a variety of mental health resources to the student body. There are counselors and other mental health practitioners within the school, but most don’t know to access these resources. Every adult in the school wants to see their students succeed and have everything they need in order to do that.
One way that Manual works to support student mental health is through the Youth Service Center. Ms. Vinson, Youth Service Center Coordinator has many different types of resources available that many don’t know about.
“The main goal of the youth service center is to help students and families with non-academic related barriers,” Vinson says.
Many of the ways she helps students in need, go on behind the scenes. While many people know the Youth Service Center as somewhere to grab a quick snack, it is much more than that. Vinson coordinates with student families in order to get to the root of frequent absences and to find solutions in order to get the student in school regularly. In some cases this could be things like a lack of access to clothing, hygiene products, school supplies, or the family may be in a financial situation where they can’t pay utility bills.
The Youth Service Center seeks to help every student attend school every day, and for them to be prepared and ready to learn. Some students may struggle with a lack of resources or food, and others just need someone to talk to. This is what Ms. Vinson works to do every day.
“They just know that I’m like a safe person that they are welcome to come to talk about not necessarily just the negative things, but even give me updates on the positive things that’s going on with them,” Vinson said. Having this relationship with a reliable adult is something that can make a huge difference in a student’s life. Many students are in need of someone that they feel cares about them, and Ms. Vinson is that person for many students throughout the school.
“To promote the mental wellness of students by assuming responsibility for providing evidence-based interventions at the individual and group level,” Elise Christensen said. Christensen has been working with Manual students for 5 years. She is a certified mental health practitioner and counselor.
“There has been a positive shift in the culture around mental health, including decreased stigma around asking for help from a counselor and knowledge of both how to access your school counselors and what they can offer,” Christensen said.
The Manual counseling department juggles many different tasks year round. In addition to supporting students with individual mental health needs, they work with scheduling, college applications, and overall track the success of the student body in order to keep all students eligible to graduate.
“I think that as a group we are always working to improve awareness and ways we can support our students,” Christensen said. Manual’s counselors and mental health practitioners are constantly expanding their programs in order to reach a larger group of students that may be in search of support.
For some students, it may feel overwhelming to schedule an appointment with their counselor or to express their needs to Ms. Vinson in the Youth Service Center. Students can always talk about their situation with a trusted teacher for guidance on what their next steps should be in order to reach success. If students are unsure about who their designated counselor is, they can visit the Manual counseling website to find out. It is critical that every student gets the support that they need in order to be successful and maintain their mental health as every student is valued and important at Manual.
