Over a thousand high school students from Team Duval came together for a day of mental wellness at the district's 10th Annual Student Mental Health Summit, an event highlighting the importance of emotional well-being and youth empowerment. Replete with music, movement, and mindfulness activities, the summit sought to equip these young minds with practical coping strategies for their daily lives.
As reported by Team Duval's district page, these students got their hands dirty making stress balls from Play-Doh and balloons and competed in a rock, scissors, paper competition while jumping through Hula Hoops. Yet, the lighthearted activities were underscored by a serious purpose: "What we’ve found is that a lot of students aren’t sitting in their feelings," Katrina Taylor, Director of Mental Health Services for the district, told the Duval County Public Schools' news page.
The theme "Big Mood: Embracing Your Emotions" encapsulated the summit's focus, offering a range of breakout sessions, panel discussions, and sensory halls for the students. Staff and about 40 vendors were present, including access to therapists, providing a plethora of mental health resources. As Taylor stressed, the challenge at hand is not just in recognizing feelings but understanding what to do with them—especially since nationally, one in five students struggle with mental health concerns and less than 20% of those receive necessary services.
Rodney Glover Jr., a Douglas Anderson School of the Arts junior and planning committee member, led the "Let’s Move" workshop brimming with activities—musical chairs and a Hula Hoop obstacle course among them. Speaking to the Duval County Public Schools' news page, Glover emphasized the event's role in fostering a sense of community and continuity among the student body: "We are big brothers and big sisters, so the younger generation that is coming after us, if we instill the teachings now and instill the mindset that you're not alone--then they'll pass that on." Glover's words mirror the summit's larger message: invigorating both body and mind as a unified approach to wellness.
The summit's endeavors appear successful, with reports suggesting that 50-60 percent of students in the district receive some form of mental health support, a significant improvement over national figures. The event left an indelible mark on the student body, arming them with the means to not just survive but thrive in the face of mental and emotional challenges.
