The Hardin County Schools Family and Youth Resource Centers have a program for parents to help prevent mental health issues among the student body.
HCS parents can attend a session called “More than Sad” from 5:30 p.m. to 7 p.m. Thursday at the Central Hardin High School Library to learn about the signs of depression, how to talk to a child about mental health and the various resources that are available.
This session is a partnership between the school and the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention. It was previously scheduled for January 13, but was postponed due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
CHHS Youth Services Center coordinator Brendan Chaney said the event was aimed specifically at parents in the district, not students. Some refreshments will also be available.
Chaney said when the foundation hosted the “Out of the Darkness” event last fall, they decided to team up to organize trainings and programs for parents, teachers and students.
She said that at the start of the school year, the school sent out surveys to staff, students and parents. She said the top three concerns for parents were counseling options, teenage stress and anxiety, and self-esteem.
“We want to educate parents and staff, and then we want to work with and educate students,” she said.
Chaney said the event will teach parents how to recognize signs of depression in their children and how to talk to them about it, as well as how families can get the resources they need in the community.
She said the district partners with 10 different agencies that can step in and help arrange therapy sessions for students if they qualify for school-based counseling.
Chaney also said there are also small groups at CHHS for different things like anxiety, coping skills and self-esteem during flextime at school.
“We really want to be preventative as much as possible and help students and parents as much as possible,” Chaney said.
Andrew Harp can be reached at 270-505-1414 or [email protected].
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