The importance of resiliency
Developing and encouraging resilience in our students is an important goal and organizational expectation for the Foundation for Lee County Public Schools. We strive to teach key characteristics of resilience to every student that participates in various student programs here at the Foundation. Characteristics like problem solving, perseverance, and self-awareness, give our students the means and motivation to tackle problems taking place both inside and outside the walls of the classroom. Given these characteristics, our students are able to actively make smart and informed decisions that lead to safe and healthy outcomes no matter how unfamiliar or difficult the problem may be. We pride ourselves on developing students that are capable of recognizing, understanding, and have the ability to resolve issues at not only the individual level, but at a community level.
Alongside our Foundation-wide focus on student resiliency, we would like to highlight two particular programs created specifically to expand and evolve our students' resiliency in Lee County: Peer-to-Peer Mentoring (P2P) and #LEELISTENS.
Peer-to-Peer Mentoring (P2P)
The Peer-to-Peer (P2P) Mentoring Program was created to offer students facing a variety of challenges, with a safe and relatable outlet for communication and assistance. The mission of the program is to train high school students to become peer mentors who can help their fellow classmates overcome obstacles, as well as pass on the skills and knowledge of how to handle these obstacles appropriately and effectively.
In collaboration with the Lee County School District Student Services Mental Health and Counseling Department, the P2P mentoring program is being piloted in two Lee County public high schools: Island Coast High and Lehigh Senior High. With the support of the School District's Student/Mental Health staff, peer mentors receive ongoing training and resources to support their peers regarding the topics of personal resilience, problem-solving, and self-awareness. Currently, 15 upperclassmen have been selected from each school and matched with a mentee to provide constant support, guidance, and confidence to push them towards successful both academically and personally.
#LEELISTENS, is a new initiative being introduced to a number of Lee County public high schools. This unique opportunity focuses on teaching us how to become better listeners and explores the consequences of what happens when we don’t pay attention. The initiative consists of screening the movie “Listen: It Only Takes a Moment”, followed by an interactive discussion and an Active Listener Training with the film’s Director, Erahm Christopher.
The #LEELISTENS mission is to give educators, students, and all members of the community an understanding and awareness of relevant mental issues. The film explores difficult topics and focuses on challenges students, parents, and educators face in their everyday lives. After the film screening, participants engage in a group discussion of the film and have the opportunity to ask the film’s director questions and voice their thoughts and feelings about issues featured in the movie. Including, sharing their personal experiences and how they relate to the characters or topics discussed in the film. The overall goal of the initiative is to raise a critical awareness of mental health, listening, paying attention to others, and how our everyday choices influence and affect those around us.
