The Umatter® YYA program for 2018-19 is complete. Overall, 12 schools and 68 youth participated and implemented Mental Health Wellness Community Action Projects in their schools. These projects included: mental health awareness week activities, an interactive play about healthy dating relationships, anxiety management resource information campaign, a school wide wellness day, and more. For a full list of project descriptions, click here.
To culminate the success of the program, six schools attended the Youth Summit event on May 30, 2019 at Vermont Technical College. The Umatter® Youth Leadership Council did an amazing job facilitating the day. Each group shared their Community Action Projects, reflected on their experience as a group, and planned next steps.
Evaluation data shows that participation in the Umatter® YYA program created a significant change in knowledge, skills, and behaviors including:
- understanding individual strengths
- knowing how to deal with stress in constructive ways
- knowing how to ask for help when struggling or upset
- working cooperatively with a group to complete a project
- knowing how to identify when a friend needs help and how to get them help
Youth share about their leadership experience in the Umatter® YYA program and invite you to get involved in supporting mental health wellness and suicide prevention in this new video.
Here are what Umatter® YYA participants are saying about their experience:
“Umatter helped me gain self-confidence and make new friends”
“I like being a part of a group that is actively trying to improve the school and the life of students.”
“People should join Umatter® if they want to make a difference in their communities. By normalizing the conversation on mental health, we help people feel less alone which ultimately brings people together.”
The 2019-2020 Umatter® YYA Program is scheduled to begin this Fall. If your school is interested in participating, please contact CHL at julia@healthandlearning.org
