Changing the World…. One Project at a Time: Improving Mental Health
EA/UNCW Think-Care-Act Project Partnership.
EA/UNCW Think-Care-Act Project Partnership.
Introduction:
Dr. Elizabeth O.
Crawford, an education professor at University of North Carolina Wilmington,
and Susan Gelber Cannon, a middle school teacher, author, and developer of
Think-Care-Act Projects, are pleased to present our second collaborative year
of sharing Think-Care-Act-Projects [TCAP].
Our EA/UNCW Think-Care-Act Project Partnership
allows Episcopal Academy sixth graders and Dr. Crawford’s senior UNCW
pre-service education majors to consider personal qualities and talents,
identify passions for social change, and act to change the world for the
better. Through video sessions, my students and those of Dr. Crawford
have inspired and encouraged each other to make a difference.
Below, and for the next
few blog postings, you will read future teachers’ guest blogs about their
TCAPs, with links for research and teaching suggestions.
Happy reading and thinking, caring, and acting!—Sue Cannon
Happy reading and thinking, caring, and acting!—Sue Cannon
Improving Mental
Health: Think-Care-Act Project
By: Johnna
Griffith, Morgan Meyers, and Kaitlyn O’Brien
University of North Carolina at Wilmington, May 2016
Twenty percent of youth ages thirteen to
eighteen live with a mental health condition.
During our block semester we were asked to
complete a Think-Care-Act Project, also known as TCAP. Everyone chose an issue
somewhat personal to focus on. Our group members each focused on mental health
in some capacity. We found that researching mental health and showing active support
of organizations aimed at helping those suffering with mental illnesses would
be the best use of our time. Our actions may have been different, but in the
end our compassion was the same.
Kaitlyn: Mental Health in Children and Breaking the Stigma
According to the National Alliance on Mental
Illness (NAMI, 2016) twenty percent of youth
ages thirteen-to-eighteen live with a mental health condition. NAMI also states
that one in every five children in the same age range has, or will have a
serious mental illness. The Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC, 2015) lists the top five mental health issues affecting
children ages three to seventeen as Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder,
behavioral or conduct problems, anxiety, depression, and Autism Spectrum
Disorder. Who would have guessed that so many children are being affected by
these serious illnesses?
We can raise awareness about these issues and
help break the stigma against mental illness. I chose to take this on as a part
of this project and raise awareness through a social media campaign. While I
may not have as many “friends” as others do, the Internet is a powerful place
to start. I posted various items on my personal Facebook account: from quotes,
to resource pages, to first hand accounts of what it’s like to suffer from
anxiety or depression. Over one month, I sporadically posted whatever I found
and thought people could identify with. I knew starting out, if just one of my
posts could help change a single person’s thinking or make them feel like
they’ve got support, then I’ve done what I intended.
Morgan: The Mental Health of Veterans
Twenty percent of veterans who served in Iraq
and Afghanistan have Posttraumatic Stress Disorder [PTSD] in a given year (Veterans’
Administration [VA], 2016). Thirty
percent of Vietnam veterans have had PTSD in their lifetime (VA, 2016). Here is something even more startling: these
numbers only account for veterans who are formally diagnosed and receive
treatments. What about the veterans who
never reach out for help? What about the
veterans who are turned away because their symptoms are not “bad enough,” or
the traumatic event could not be “proven?”
I will tell you what happens.
Those veterans fall through the cracks and become one of the twenty-two
veterans who commit suicide in the United States every day. That means that ONE veteran takes his or her
OWN LIFE every 65 MINUTES.
My intentions for this project were to: 1) raise
awareness for veteran PTSD and suicide, since the issue receives very little
attention, 2) learn more about service animals, and how they benefit veterans,
3) directly benefit veterans by taking action.
I decided to raise awareness using social media, by participating in a
campaign started by Mission22 (an organization that raises awareness and funds
to end veteran suicide). I also
volunteered at a local 5K run/1 mile walk hosted by Paws4People (an
organization that raises, trains, and places service dogs with veterans for
free.
Johhna: Paws4People Foundation
Service dogs are very important, whether they
are trained for help with physical disabilities, emotional support, or
something that seems as simple as children reading to them for confidence. Dogs
are smart animals. There are so many things dogs do for people just by simply
providing company and support.
At a Humane Society in Missouri, they started a
“Shelter Buddies Reading Program” (Messenger, 2016). This program is not only
to help the dogs become socially aware and interactive without forcing them to
play with people, but it also helps kids practice their reading to someone who
cannot talk or correct them (Messenger, 2016). Human participants are also
learning social skills and empathy (Messenger, 2016). By seeing these shy and
fearful dogs, the students become more caring and careful by being aware of
their surroundings (Messenger, 2016).
At Bellamy Elementary School and now College
Road Early Childhood Center (CRECC) where they house Bellamy’s kindergarteners,
they have a program where Tibbet the Dog comes in and the students get to read
to him to practice their fluency. It was heartwarming watching a child I know
gain the confidence in his reading, despite a reading disability. Dogs help
build the confidence a child may need by offering a judgment-free reading zone.
If teachers took the time to advocate to obtain support
dogs for their schools, there would be a huge increase in student confidence
and an increase in school attendance. Many children love dogs. With a dog in
children’s schools, they would want to be there to see the dog, to talk to the
dog, and to read and do other subjects with the dog. The dog would provide a
judgment-free zone where children could really work on their schoolwork and
feel confident. They could read more fluently if they were not afraid of
someone correcting them before they even got to try.
My intentions for this project were to learn how
one obtains a service dog. I also wanted to find out what educational service
dogs do for children. I wanted to learn how dogs were trained and how one
became capable of training these dogs. Therefore, I worked alongside Mr. McCann
this semester and learned a lot about his intentions for having a service dog
in his classroom. He wants kids to feel that they have someone to talk to and without
being judged. He wants the dog to be a motivator, to relieve stress and help
kids to stop worrying about getting anyone in trouble. I watched PALMER come in
and interact with the students and saw a glimpse of how she was trained and
what she will be doing.
References/ Resources
Information on Think-Care-Act Projects:
U.S.
Department of Veterans Affairs (VA). (2016). PTSD: National Center for PTSD: http://www.ptsd.va.gov/index.asp
Mission22 organization: http://www.mission22.com
Paws4People Foundation: http://paws4people.org
Messenger,
S. (n.d.). Something Truly Beautiful Is Happening At This Animal Shelter.
Retrieved April 10, 2016, from https://www.thedodo.com/kids-read-to-shelter-dogs-1620612867.html
National
Alliance on Mental Illness. (n.d.). Mental Health Facts Children and Teens.
Retrieved April 10, 2016, from https://www.nami.org/NAMI/media/NAMI-Media/Infographics/Children-MH-Facts-NAMI.pdf
Center for Disease Control and Prevention.
(2015, November 12). Children’s Mental Health – New Report. Retrieved April 10,
2016, from http://www.cdc.gov/features/childrensmentalhealth/
