Mindfulness at Worcester Academy

Friday, September 18th, 2009
by Josh L

by Jennifer McCarthy, Director of Counseling

Studies show that excessive stress is negatively impacting the learning capacity, behavior and health of our youth.  We are starting to appreciate the role of stress in binge drinking, depression, insomnia  and other negative lifestyle and health issues.   Whether it is pressure to succeed at the highest level or simply to find a way to manage the many responsibilities of both their educational and personal lives, students are at risk.

Therefore Worcester Academy invited the Benson-Henry Institute to our campus to facilitate faculty and student trainings in August, 2009.  The Benson Henry Institute’s Education Initiative is a research-validated program which brings relaxation response-based coping skills and life management tools into the school environment to help teachers and students better manage daily stress and positively impact students’ academic performance and health.

Benson-Henry facilitators Laura Malloy, LICSW and Rana Chudnofsky, M.Ed. also invited Philips Exeter Academy  faculty members (Counselor Connie Morse, LICSW and Director of Health Education Carol Cahalane) to join both trainings since Exeter has been practicing and teaching these skills for five years.  The faculty and student leaders who participated in the training learned about stress awareness, relaxation response exercises, challenging negative thoughts, visualization, body awareness/yoga, goal setting and other healthy behavior skills.

Now that the training is complete, the faculty and student leaders who have been trained will be thinking and planning for ways to bring these practices into our classrooms and throughout the campus at Worcester Academy.   Student leaders Deb Negus and Allie Iaccarino were so excited about the training that they took the initiative to begin a weekly club called Club Med(itation) where they will practice a variety of relaxation methods throughout the year.  The Pillars Peer Educators are eager to get into the Health and Wellness classes to teach these skills to their peers.  We hope this is the beginning of something that will promote better health throughout the school year and beyond.

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