Arcadia High School Launches New Wellness Center to Support Students

By Arcadia Unified DigitalCommunications Intern Leila Nunez

While many school districts have onecounselor who is shared by multiple schools, the Arcadia Unified SchoolDistrict has made educating the “whole child” a priority and has taken action overthe past few years to secure at least one full-time counselor at each of itsschools. Building on its efforts, Arcadia Unified has added a full-time socialand emotional learning counselor, Dr. Deja Anderson, to oversee Arcadia HighSchool’s new Wellness Center and provide dedicated mental health and wellnesssupport for the students and staff of Arcadia High.

Virtually unveiled at the start of the2020-21 school year, Arcadia High’s online Wellness Center is a place wherestudents, parents, and staff can go when they need additional mental health supportor if they want to be proactive with learning about and maintaining theirmental well-being.

“My mental health has definitely gottenmuch worse since distance learning started because of the pressure from schoolworkand college applications,” said a senior at Arcadia High School. “I see myselfstruggling a lot because Zoom and Google Meet sessions are not the sameexperience as in-person lectures,” she shared.

Arcadia High students have become knownfor the high expectations they set for themselves, making Arcadia High’sWellness Center the newest step in the school and district’s continuous journeyto help students find a healthy balance between schoolwork and life, as well asfinding fulfillment beyond academic achievement. In addition, with the COVID-19pandemic wreaking havoc on everyone’s sense of normalcy, Arcadia High’sWellness Center services also aim to shore up strategies and techniques to helpstudents get through the various layers of stress piling on during this time.

With Distance Learning in effect sinceSpring 2020, planning for Arcadia High’s Wellness Center saw a virtual shift.

“We had been planning to create aWellness Center at the high school so that students can go in and meet withcounselors one-on-one or participate in wellness activities,” said Arcadia HighSocial and Emotional Learning Counselor Dr. Deja Anderson.

“It’s interesting becausewhen COVID hit, our staff had to discuss an alternative way to provide valuableresources for the mental well-being of our students. Now, ever since thispandemic, students feel more comfortable with checking-in virtually because itenables their hope for privacy more than meeting in person,” explained Dr.Anderson.

Some students have reportedthat the quality of their mental health has not been affected by the events of2020, exemplifying how mental well-being needs vary vastly from person toperson.

“This year took time to getused to, but I’ve got the hang of it now,” said an Arcadia High freshman.“Adapting from in-person to distance learning has been quite simple.”

Helping students understandhow mental health and mental illness operate is also important. “You havemental health and then you have mental illness [… and they are] two differentthings,” said Dr. Anderson.

According to Dr. Anderson,mental health includes emotional, psychological, and emotional well-being.Similar to physical health, mental health should be practiced and maintained.Taking the time to learn strategies to help bolster mental health helps peopleidentify and process the stress they are experiencing, which is especiallyuseful during difficult times.

While mental health andmental illness do not specifically equate to one another, Dr. Anderson advocatedthat both are important to talk about. “In order for more people to learn aboutmental health, we have to have those discussions,” noted Dr. Anderson. “Theonly way to raise awareness for mental health is to talk about it to others.”

The Arcadia High Wellness Center website allows visitors to easily find accessible and organized sections in key categories that discuss topics, such as managing anxiety, tips for getting better sleep, daily journaling activities, and more, which can help manage and take care of social and emotional health. The mindful activities found in the Virtual Wellness Room promote self-care and provide support to the Arcadia High community during this year’s back-to-back stressful situations.

A significant feature ofthe virtual Arcadia High Wellness Center is the bi-weekly drop-in sessionsoffered to students. This program allows students to meet with Dr. Anderson on Mondaysand Thursdays via Google Meet. Dr. Anderson shared that the virtual aspect ofthe Wellness Center seems to have created an increased sense of privacy forstudents, which helps them feel more comfortable in meeting with her duringthese sessions.

In addition to thesecheck-ins for students, the Wellness Center has also hosted virtual workshopsfor parents on how to support and identify mental health needs, such asstrategies for managing anxiety and stress, chair yoga to help with screen-timeoverload in this time of virtual everything, and more. Arcadia High’s WellnessCenter also offers wellness sessions for Arcadia Unified teachers and staff,which have so far included how to leverage positive psychology and managing stress.

Mental health plays anextremely important role in our ability to adapt to life’s hurdles. It affects theway we perceive our thoughts, feelings, and how we communicate with oneanother. Dr. Anderson voiced that the primary purpose of the Wellness Center atArcadia High School is to inform others about the significance of mental healthand promote awareness.

“Our role when it comes tomental health is to educate ourselves about it so that we can help others inthe future,” said Dr. Anderson.

Since the physical closure of schools in March 2020, Arcadia Unified has been proactive in keeping mental health at the forefront. In addition to curating a list of resources for students, staff, and parents to easily access on its website, Arcadia Unified also participated in Mental Health Mondays through May’s Mental Health Awareness Month. Arcadia High has also hosted “Arcadia High Wellness Weeks” over the years, which has seen students engaged in many mindfulness activities to help promote and encourage positive social-emotional strategies.

For more information about Arcadia High School’s virtual Wellness Center, visit bit.ly/ArcadiaHighWellnessCenter, and for more information about the Arcadia Unified School District’s commitment to educating the whole child, visit www.ausd.net.

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