LANTANA, Fla. — The School District of Palm Beach County currently has about 3,000 students getting support for mental health issues. District leaders said that's more than usual, brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic.
But a $1 million federal grant will help infuse programs that strengthen students' abilities to handle tough situations.
The Safe School Ambassadors Program teaches students how to take care of each other. The skills can go a long way toward leaving a lasting impact on their school campus.
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The Safe School ambassadors at Lantana Community Middle School are a diverse group of students, problem solvers, and leaders ready to make a difference.
"They are the first people on the scene and they know what's going on on the campus," said Decarla Boggs, a school counselor at Lantana Community Middle School. "They are trained with the skills to intervene and come back and report to a trusted adult."
Students like Ky'leigh McQueen.
"I felt honored for the fact that I got selected and that somebody seen a lot of worth in me," McQueen said.
The seventh grade student takes a lot of pride in her responsibility to keep her fellow students safe.
"I have reported a lot of things that have been going on on campus," McQueen said. "Whether it goes from kids being mistreated for the color of their skin or mistreated because bullies deciding to target on them and them only."
Through a series of training sessions, the students learn how to stand up for themselves and each other.
"Nine times out of 10, kids are going to go to other kids. And then the kids will come to us," Boggs said.
"We've definitely seen an increase in anxiety and depression for sure with our kids," said Keith Oswald, the School District of Palm Beach County's chief of equity and wellness. "When it comes to bullying, there have been more challenges since returning to brick-and-mortar."
Oswald said the timing couldn't be better to expand the Safe School Ambassadors Program to more schools.
"More than ever, there's a need," Oswald said. "Social media — when it comes to teenagers — only makes things more complicated and how to use that technology responsibly gets hard."
"I learned that when new students come how I was, I can make them feel comfortable," said sixth grade student Ayat Rahnan.
Having Safe School ambassadors is creating a more accepting and inclusive school culture at Lantana Community Middle School.
"Being able to help people and knowing that if something happens, knowing that I can prevent it before it even happens," McQueen said.
And they hope more schools can see the same benefits.
"It takes a village," Boggs said. "When you enlist powerful kids to help you and they are in the forefront and they are on the ground running and ready to do this, I say, do it."
The federal grant will also fund a teen mental health first aid program to teach high schoolers the signs and symptoms of mental and emotional distress to look for.
The following Palm Beach County public schools currently have an actively trained Safe School Ambassadors Program:
- Berkshire Elementary School
- Coral Reef Elementary School
- Cypress Trails Elementary School
- Elbridge Gale Elementary School
- Forest Hill Elementary School
- Gove Elementary School
- Highland Elementary School
- Hope Centennial Elementary School
- Morakami Park Elementary School
- Seminole Trails Elementary School
- South Grade Elementary School
- Starlight Cove Elementary School
- U.B. Kinsey Elementary School
- Westgate Elementary School
- Whispering Pines Elementary School
- Congress Middle School
- Crestwood Middle School
- Don Estridge High Tech Middle School
- Eagles Landing Middle School
- Howell L. Watkins Middle School
- Jupiter Middle School
- Lantana Community Middle School
- Omni Middle School
- Tradewinds Middle School
- Woodlands Middle School
- Palm Springs Middle School
- Atlantic Community High School
- Boca Raton Community High School
- Spanish River Community High School
- Suncoast High School
- West Boca Raton Community High School
Through the $1 million federal grant, the School District of Palm Beach County will add six high schools each year to the Safe School Ambassadors Program over the next three years.
The district is also ramping up its Safe School ambassador teams district-wide and expects the school list to grow considerably over the next six months, a spokesperson said.
To learn more about the Safe School Ambassadors Program, click here.
During a workshop on Wednesday, the Palm Beach County School Board will hear a presentation from Oswald on the status of mental health services in the School District of Palm Beach County.