Mental Health and Wellness Summit to Return to ELHS

For the third year in a row, a Mental Health and Wellness Summit will be held at East Lansing High School on Wednesday, April 29, from 5 to 7 p.m.

Heather Findley, the district’s mental health coordinator, spoke to ELi about the event and how it has grown.

“We actually had about a 50% increase [in attendees] from our first year to our second year,” Findley said in a Zoom interview. “We’re hoping that that will grow [again] this year, we have 36 vendor tables [and] six agencies that are having activities in our student union, in addition to our six presentations.”

She said that presentations will run concurrently, starting at 5:15 and 6:15 p.m. One such presentation is called “Brave Brains and Big Feelings: Anxiety Skills for Families,” while others will focus on seasonal depression, meditation and complex post traumatic stress disorder.

Findley touted members of the ELPS staff who are leading several of these talks.

“[They] looked within themselves and thought there would be value in sharing some of their lived experience with our community, and thought they might be able to give space to our students to say, ‘Hey, you’re not alone,’” she said. “It takes a lot of vulnerability and a lot of honest assessment.”

Along with school staff, community agencies, organizations and providers, have stepped up to support this annual event and bring information to students and families who need it, Findley said. She added that both the COVID-19 pandemic and media like the book “The Anxious Generation” have shined a light on the mental health challenges young people face.

The open-house format, she said, gives attendees an opportunity to come and go as they please and participate in activities like making slime or journals, both made available by Rooted Counseling. Pizza and water will also be available.

The East Lansing Public Library, Canines for Change therapy dogs and Spartan Ninja Warrior will also be present. Visitors will receive a passport to visit presentations and vendors and can earn gift bags at the end of the night.

Findley praised Precios Armstrong, director of ELPS special education, and Erin Parcell, a local therapist who is her co-chair for the event.

“We welcome everyone,” Findley said. “We hope to see as many people as possible [and] look forward to continuing this for many years to come.”