Cultivating School and Community Connectedness to Empower Youth to Thrive

Abstract

We face an epidemic of loneliness and a crisis in youth wellness. Reflective of challenges across the education sector, youth in Reading, Massachusetts face unprecedented levels of anxiety and depression, the impact of the Covid pandemic, and disconnection. Schools and communities are a crucial part of the solution. The heart of the strategic project I carried out as a doctoral resident in Reading Public Schools is to mitigate challenges through a multi-faceted focus on connectivity: strengthening connections among young people, with families, staff, and community partners. This capstone illustrates the power of place-based collaborative action to cultivate school and community connectedness. Through strategic alliances with Reading Public Schools, the Reading Children’s Cabinet, the Reading Office of Equity and Social Justice, and the Reading Coalition for Prevention and Support, I developed and implemented a comprehensive initiative to cultivate connectedness and resilience through four major strategies: ● Elevate youth voice and agency to build a community of belonging through youth listening sessions at Reading Memorial High School to discuss students’ sense of belonging as members of Reading Public Schools and in the greater Reading community. ● Strengthen family and community engagement through a year-long event series with Phyllis Fagell, author of Middle School Superpowers, with concrete strategies and tactics to empower middle school students to thrive. ● Build capacity among staff for healthy, respectful relationships in the workplace – at school and in the broader community. ● Leverage an array of community partners to prioritize and coordinate youth mental health services as a community-wide strategy. The capstone and strategic project it describes shed light on the powerful potential of public education in cultivating healthy interconnectedness. In a complex and evolving context, the school district serves as a vibrant hub of community engagement, illustrating the unique convening power of schools to build healthy relationships, connections, and find common ground – for young people and their communities to thrive.