Improving Stress Management throughout the SA Upper School
Improving Stress Management throughout the SA Upper School
Embedded Files
The Class
The Class
I took a course titled Community Immersion in which I studied the for-profit, non-profit, and government sectors of my local community through the lens of systems thinking. Throughout the class, we met many different people who play important roles in the community. Many of them related to the health and well being of citizens, which influenced my project.
I took a course titled Community Immersion in which I studied the for-profit, non-profit, and government sectors of my local community through the lens of systems thinking. Throughout the class, we met many different people who play important roles in the community. Many of them related to the health and well being of citizens, which influenced my project.
Background Research
Background Research
Our class hosted a panel of mental health and student support professionals from around our community to learn about the root causes of stress and best practices for stress management. We also collaborated with the Youth Empowerment Team with support from the Rowan County Youth Services Bureau, Rowan County Public Health Department, and the Center for Prevention Services to develop our ideas.
Our class hosted a panel of mental health and student support professionals from around our community to learn about the root causes of stress and best practices for stress management. We also collaborated with the Youth Empowerment Team with support from the Rowan County Youth Services Bureau, Rowan County Public Health Department, and the Center for Prevention Services to develop our ideas.
percieved stress scale.pdfBenchmarking
Benchmarking
Our class decided that, with systems thinking, we could improve the stress management of our school community. We benchmarked our school community's stress level using the The Perceived Stress Scale (PSS) which has been a commonly used stress assessment for over 40 years.
Our class decided that, with systems thinking, we could improve the stress management of our school community. We benchmarked our school community's stress level using the The Perceived Stress Scale (PSS) which has been a commonly used stress assessment for over 40 years.
We created a vision statement and project goal
We created a vision statement and project goal
Vision Statement: The students of Salisbury Academy Community Immersion class envision a school environment where students can embrace learning and manage the stress that may accompany new and challenging learning scenarios in a healthy and productive way. Guided by systems thinking and a culture of problem solving we will create systems to support healthy and holistic stress management approaches for all of our school community members.
Vision Statement: The students of Salisbury Academy Community Immersion class envision a school environment where students can embrace learning and manage the stress that may accompany new and challenging learning scenarios in a healthy and productive way. Guided by systems thinking and a culture of problem solving we will create systems to support healthy and holistic stress management approaches for all of our school community members.
Project Goal: Reduce the average perceived stress metric across out school community from 22 (moderate stress) to 17 (moderate/low stress).
Project Goal: Reduce the average perceived stress metric across out school community from 22 (moderate stress) to 17 (moderate/low stress).
We determined who our stakeholders were. We then surveyed them to determine their commitment and interest in our possible projects. We also analyzed the projects by cost and feasibility to determine the most viable options.
We determined who our stakeholders were. We then surveyed them to determine their commitment and interest in our possible projects. We also analyzed the projects by cost and feasibility to determine the most viable options.
My Leadership Role
My Leadership Role
I was responsible for the project that matched our dual enrolled juniors and seniors with buddies at Catawba College. I started by creating a video to help attract Catawba students to participate and sign up for my peer mentor program.
I was responsible for the project that matched our dual enrolled juniors and seniors with buddies at Catawba College. I started by creating a video to help attract Catawba students to participate and sign up for my peer mentor program.
I created a Gantt chart to make a schedule for what I needed to achieve to get the project up and running.
I created a Gantt chart to make a schedule for what I needed to achieve to get the project up and running.
Preparing the Project
Preparing the Project
I emailed leaders at Catawba to get names of professors that our students were in class with and to garner support for the project. I also wrote a budget and grant to procure gift cards for the beginning and end of the semester as a reward for participation.
I emailed leaders at Catawba to get names of professors that our students were in class with and to garner support for the project. I also wrote a budget and grant to procure gift cards for the beginning and end of the semester as a reward for participation.
The Final Outcome
The Final Outcome
Our class goal was to reduce our school's average score of perceived stress from the original 22 to 17. Over the course of 8 months, through the combined implementation of our projects we saw a decrease from 22 to 16.6 on the Perceived Stress Scale. The range of 14 to 26 is considered moderate stress. Our initial goal was to reach 17 on the scale. It was extremely satisfying to see the results of our projects pay both in terms of quantitative and qualitative data.
Our class goal was to reduce our school's average score of perceived stress from the original 22 to 17. Over the course of 8 months, through the combined implementation of our projects we saw a decrease from 22 to 16.6 on the Perceived Stress Scale. The range of 14 to 26 is considered moderate stress. Our initial goal was to reach 17 on the scale. It was extremely satisfying to see the results of our projects pay both in terms of quantitative and qualitative data.
Life Skills
Life Skills
As I was making my project I felt like I was becoming a better confident communicator. Writing, and sending emails to people I had never met, was not my preference, as I like to call people to get answers faster. This new means of contact by email helped me realize that most businesses use email to comminicate, and learning how to use it will aid in my future as a confident communicator.
As I was making my project I felt like I was becoming a better confident communicator. Writing, and sending emails to people I had never met, was not my preference, as I like to call people to get answers faster. This new means of contact by email helped me realize that most businesses use email to comminicate, and learning how to use it will aid in my future as a confident communicator.
My added skills didn't stop there. I also became a better creative problem solver. My project had me email people that would take weeks to get back to me. So, I had to find other ways to contact those people and get the answers I needed. Even though some people weren't getting back to me, my creative problem solving skills helped me find a way to combat this. There were times when I became very busy with other classes and progress on this project slowed down. I am pleased with the progress I made and the fact that such a large project was able to be completed in a relatively short period of time.
My added skills didn't stop there. I also became a better creative problem solver. My project had me email people that would take weeks to get back to me. So, I had to find other ways to contact those people and get the answers I needed. Even though some people weren't getting back to me, my creative problem solving skills helped me find a way to combat this. There were times when I became very busy with other classes and progress on this project slowed down. I am pleased with the progress I made and the fact that such a large project was able to be completed in a relatively short period of time.
As my project went on, I encountered challenges in my way, which I had to overcome. One of these challenges was to be a Motivated student, this is because it was hard for me to stay on track with this project in the midst of school work, homework, and my daily life. When I did have time to work on my project I had issues with the communication between me and the staff at Catawba college.
As my project went on, I encountered challenges in my way, which I had to overcome. One of these challenges was to be a Motivated student, this is because it was hard for me to stay on track with this project in the midst of school work, homework, and my daily life. When I did have time to work on my project I had issues with the communication between me and the staff at Catawba college.
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