Inside Brockton High School, dozens of teens are learning how to offer mental health support to their classmates.
The students are “under a lot of different stressors” in the age of social media, according to Brockton Schools’ director of health and wellness, Dennis Genuich. Whether it be online feuds, arguments, growing expectations, or a mental health diagnosis.
“Conflict is a big thing in high school,” said student Darlie Gregoire.
The group of 40 students, called the “First-Aiders,” is trained in conflict resolution, mediation, and mental health. They even received a certification in March from the mental health education group Pinnacle Partnerships.
Part of the training includes role-playing sessions where they learn how to mediate discussions and approach their peers if they think they may be struggling with self-harm, eating disorders, depression, or bullying. The simulations also include how to deal with inter-peer conflicts, such as disagreements about a crush and betrayal.
Genuich said students are often more aware of the goings-on than they are, and other students feel more comfortable speaking with their peers than with an adult.
“We are connected in a way before the adults can come,” said Gregoire. “It does give us an advantage.”
“Some of the students who seemingly have it all together and you wouldn’t notice that they are having any difficulty. Those are the students reaching out for help, and they reach out primarily to their peers,” Genuich said.
One student, Princess Adedyon, has already put the skills to use, helping a friend in a crisis. She explained that her approach includes an action plan to help students resolve conflicts.
“Instead of me dismissing it, I talked to her, and then we both decided as a collective that it would be good for us to find one
of her trusted adults,” Princess explained.
She explained that they don’t directly tell the students how to solve the problem, but they provide pathways for their peers to get help.
“Anyone should never be afraid to reach out to someone,” Adedyon explained.
Sometimes the situations are tense and nerve-wracking, and she has to remind herself she’s trained for them.
“I think I do take a breath and I tell myself that it’s okay. I am trained in this, I know what I am doing,” said Adedyon.
Genuich explained that the goal is to double the number of trained students by expanding the training to all of the health classes next year.