Wilson School District will help students deal with stress

by Steve Reinbrecht

Wilson School District plans to start a program to help students – from kindergarten through 12th grade – manage stress.

Teachers, administrators, guidance counselors and other school staff have increasing concerns about the problem, and that prompted the plan for a program. The idea didn’t come from parents, Superintendent Curt Baker said.

After a board meeting Monday, Baker declined to give specific examples of how stress is causing problems, though he did say some students have been acting out in unhealthy ways.

In general, stressed-out teens might suffer declining grades, crying jags, fighting, suicide attempts, or drug use, and Wilson has seen all of those manifestations, Baker said.

Students are more stressed about the future than their parents were at the same age. 

Fear of the future, wondering whether they will do as well as their parents, worrying they won’t be able to get into college or reach their life’s goals – all are stressors for this generation, Baker said.

Poverty increases stress, and Baker noted that one in four students are eligible for free or reduced-price lunches.

One outcome might be implementing student outreach that goes beyond traditional efforts. Baker said the schools already have great resources, such as a student assistance program (SAP) and excellent counselors.

A study by New York University showed that teenagers “experience high levels of chronic stress, to the extent it impedes their abilities to succeed academically, compromises their mental health functioning, and fosters risk behavior.”

“Over time, selective high schools have oriented themselves to address a context of increasingly competitive college admissions.

“School work, college applications, extracurricular activities, and parental expectations all contribute to teenagers’ stress.

“Youth, schools, and experts identified substance use as a common strategy for coping with stress.”

Wilson educators plan to look at six factors:

• Expectations of students and parents
• Grading, GPAs and grade competition
• Low student resilience
• Poverty and economic situations
• Substance abuse
• Under-involvement and disengagement 

Baker expects to begin by having experts speak to groups by the end of January.