'Do better.' Speakers criticize SMFHS response to students' Instagram page on mental health
Akron Beacon JournalNov 23, 2021
A group of
They also implored administrators to "do better" when responding to such reports.
But the creator of the Concerned Students of SMFHS Instagram page and a classmate who helps run the account were not allowed to attend the Monday meeting due to suspensions they claim were "retaliatory."
Superintendent
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High school sophomore
Bloom said school administrators quickly identified her as the account's creator and asked her to take it down, which she declined.
She said a principal told her that the district had discussed the page with its attorneys and could not force her to take it down. Administrators asked her to redact the names of school staff, which she agreed to do moving forward.
They also wanted her to redact the names of staff members that appeared on the account's earliest posts. Bloom did not retroactively alter posts she made prior to her agreement.
Then on Friday, Bloom and her journalism classmate who helps run the account,
Both students say that they were not in class because they were reporting stories and that it is common practice to do so. They also said that their absences were not reflected in the district's digital records.
"I find it a bit odd that two good students who don't get in trouble would get suspended for skipping a class that would normally garner a warning," Kerensky's mother,
"The lack of urgency, action and attention regarding the newest public information about the student body's struggles is a representation of how poorly the crisis is being handled," sophomore
The school currently has QR codes posted throughout the building that link to the mental health resources, as part of the
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Hope Squad is a new peer-to-peer suicide prevention program that trains nominated student leaders to identify at-risk students, provide friendship and seek help from an adult.
Kelley continued, "I would like to see counselors more engaged, approachable, present. This mental health crisis is not one-sided. The actions the administration have taken to date have been ineffective and demeaning. I've been told: 'When you know better, you do better.' So I ask you to please do better."
Several people also demanded a retraction or apology from the district for the initial statement from high school Principal
In response, board vice president
"They are trying very hard, they are listening, and there are things in these types of situations that you can't address publicly... that doesn't mean [discipline] didn't happen, but no one knows," he said.
The number of students seeing counselors has increased this year, while counselors "are struggling themselves" and "trying their best to address a growing need," Whitacre said.
The high school's current student to counselor ratio is 300:1, which is lower than the
ASCA has recommended a ratio of 250:1 since 1965. In the 2019-2020 school year, only
Bratten said the district has not added counselors to the high school since he joined the district in 2015, instead adding three counselors to the lower grade levels.
"We were sorely lacking help at
Bloom and Kerensky watched the board meeting remotely and said that they were disappointed and frustrated by Whitacre's response, but would continue to share stories on the Instagram page.
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