COME OUT IN SUPPORT OF TEENS' MENTAL HEALTH.
Saint Matthew’s is hosting a Valley Interfaith Project “Civic Academy” event on Monday, March 13, from 6:30 to 8:00 pm. This is an educational session to promote a community wide response to teens’ mental health needs (from schools, congregations, after school programs). Learn how you can be part of this response. We are hoping to get a great turnout from Saint Matthew’s to demonstrate support for this important work. Please invite family members, neighbors, and friends who share this concern for young people.
MORE ABOUT THE MISSION
A group of Saint Matthew’s parishioners have been working for the last several months with The Valley Interfaith Project (also known as VIP) to bring awareness to the members of the Chandler Unified School District board of the dire need for better education and added programs on student mental health relief. This was brought to our attention due to the large number of student suicides last spring (3 students over a 10 day period), and 69 students in East Valley school districts over the past five years. As a result of these suicides a group was formed within the student population to try and bring about change in the attitudes of the administrations of the schools to provide more counselors, social workers and teacher involvement that the students could have access to.
Word spread among the schools, but the administration did not listen and progress was very slow. As a result, Valley Interfaith Group got involved and members of Saint Matthew’s Beloved Community, led by Larry Dumka and Jess Trias, joined in a series of meetings with other valley churches and decided to attend the Chandler School Board Meetings in mass to show our support from the local community.
The first meeting with the school board was attended by 47 of us, all wearing our VIP buttons, along with three of the key members of the active student group who gave a short speech about what they would like to see happen with their schools. We all stood up while they spoke, the large number of active adult voters helping gain attention. By the second meeting we attended, changes being proposed in the schools were presented by the various administrative departments and it was very impressive to see the plans in place. By this time the Chandler school board members, and especially the Superintendent, were very much aligned with the group's wishes.
At this last school board meeting, the members and staff working on these changes were invited to attend the next big meeting - a Civic Academy, which will be held at Saint Matthew’s, in our sanctuary, at 6:30 PM on Monday, March 13. We are hoping to attract a very large crowd and are inviting news coverage, heavy student attendance, parents, all Valley Interfaith congregations, and even plan to notify the Chandler Chamber of Commerce.
The purpose of the Civic Academy is to activate wider engagement on issues of teen mental health both between VIP Congregations, and public policy makers such as the school board members. We really hope you will attend and support this cause, as well as invite friends or neighbors with school age teens to help prevent any future unnecessary loss of life.
BELOW ARE A FEW POINTS LARRY DUMKA POINTED OUT AT ONE OF OUR MEETINGS:
Teen girls are experiencing record high levels of violence, sadness, and suicide risk.
Nearly 1 in 3 (30%) seriously considered attempting suicide - up nearly 60% from a decade ago.
1 in 5 (18%) experienced sexual violence in the past year - up 20% since 2017, when CDC stated monitoring this measure.
LGBQ+ teens continue to face extremely high levels of violence and mental health challenges.
Raises urgency to invest in schools as a vital lifeline to help struggling youth.