According to the Poland Schools website, The Lowellville School District experienced a tragic event dealing with one of their students during the previous school year. Lowellville was deeply touched by the outpouring of support they received from neighboring districts following this travesty. This kindness inspired them to take action by participating in Mental Health Awareness Month. Furthermore, they reached out to invite Poland to join their upcoming Mental Health Awareness Week, called “Break the Stigma.” It occurred during the first week of May. The aim was to break down the stigma surrounding mental health and encourage kids to seek help when necessary. 

The themes were:

• Mellow Monday- Wear your pajamas to relieve stress and lower your cortisol levels.
• Twin Tuesday- Team up against stress. Dress like a friend because you are never alone.
• Wear Green Wednesday- Wear green for mental health awareness. Green represents the green light to reach out for help, if needed.
• Tie Dye Thursday- Colors can represent a wide range of emotions. It’s okay to express them!
• Bulldog Fam Friday-Wear your spirit gear to show your support of our Bulldog family.

According to Tyler Canfield, a sophomore, he was “touched by the overwhelming sense of community support” that we express for one another. After all, the school district is like “one big family.”

Mia Melone, also a sophomore, shared the sentiment. “It was really cool to see everyone participating in the themes. I hope we do this again.”

The success of this school year’s mental health awareness week will hopefully prompt the Poland school board to continue this event for years to come.

In the words of Poland senior Stephen Solic: “We’re all in this together.”