Tomball, TX – Tomball Regional Health Foundation is excited to announce its recent grant award to Concordia Lutheran High School (CLHS) in the amount of $25,791.00 for the continuation of teen mental health awareness and support programs. These programs will focus on two specific areas: Teen Mental Health Initiatives, and Vape Prevention Initiatives.
Given the astonishing statistics surrounding teen suicide, depression, anxiety, eating disorders, etc., the need for strong mental health programs within our schools seems undeniable. Too many adolescents fall victim during the high school years, and while many of these problems that develop are common, they are treatable, and early detection and intervention strategies are proven to work. With proper mental health education and training, our school counselors, teachers and staff can help identify, support and improve a student’s resilience and their ability to succeed in high school and in life; however, to be effective, all school stakeholders need to be educated and involved so that a student feels comfortable in asking for help when he or she is struggling. A new epidemic among our teens is the use of e-cigarettes (vaping), which has risen about 75% in the past year among high school students, overtaking tobacco products in popularity (according to the FDA). Vaping is the new smoking and it is not healthy, especially in consideration of the impact on a teenager’s still-developing brain, where vaping affects the formation of circuits that control attention and learning capability, not to mention, one’s vulnerability to addictive behavior.
With this grant Concordia will continue to enhance and improve our mental health initiatives with further education and support programs provided to CLHS staff, students, as well as within the Community via presentations/workshops open to all parents that will address suicide awareness and social media issues among our teens. This grant will also continue to support CLHS clubs and organizations that help empower students on these issues. In addition, Concordia has installed cutting edge technology that is capable of detecting vaping, smoke and noise disturbances within our school’s restrooms, with the objective of increasing situational awareness, as well as deterrence of harmful and dangerous behavior on our school campus. These devices, combined with an anti-vaping education campaign geared toward students throughout the school year, will hopefully help control, if not deter students from partaking in vaping activities.
“We are pleased to be able to continue to support these initiatives at Concordia Lutheran High School, and the children in our community who will benefit from them. Adolescence today have so many more public health and social issues to deal with, so anyway we can help is a blessing, said Vicki Clark, TRHF Chairman of the Board.”
According to Julie Kangas, Principal at Concordia, “We’re thrilled to receive this grant from Tomball Regional Health Foundation as it will allow us to continue to provide teen mental health education and training for our faculty and staff, as well as bring awareness and coping strategies to our students, parents and our Community through professionals who will come to Concordia to address specific teen mental health topics. This grant will also allow us to deter and hopefully stop teen vaping among our students with the addition of vape detection devices installed on campus.”