By Justin Fernandez, Ajmaanie Andre, Kymani Hughes, Krystal Li and Angely Peña-Agramonte Urban Health Media Project Hannah Corcoran had her plan in place: after graduating from high school, the Miami teen wanted to attend her dream school, the San Francisco Art Institute, and major in art. But then came the COVID-19 pandemic. Hannah was forced...
Tag: mental health
COVID-19 pandemic leaves ‘transportation deserts’ even more barren
This Urban Health Media Project story was reported by Richard Wright Public Charter School students Grace Reed and Kamaia Bexley, UHMP intern Pam Rentz of Florida A & M University and Georgetown University’s Master’s in Global Health program students Mary Kate Fogarty, Andrew Lizon and Maria Cordero. Principal writing by Richard Willing, UHMP. The members...
Early screening for learning disabilities ‘would make a huge difference’
By Aileen Delgado, Courtney Curtis and Rick Hampson Urban Health Media Project WASHINGTON -- Frank Pinckney wonders what his life could have been like if his parents and teachers had believed what he now believes: that as a child he had a learning disability, attention deficit disorder (ADHD) and suffered from trauma after a sexual...
Virtual learning harbors its own gifts
By Tamar Coon Urban Health Media Project Before March of 2020, everything was normal: I was in 8th grade at Columbia Heights Educational Campus. We were reading a book that I loved. Then, my homeroom teacher started talking about a plague, and I heard about a virus and lockdowns happening in China. All of a...
‘I thought I was the only one’: Peer support groups help teens fight loneliness, isolation of COVID-19 pandemic
By Olivia Fendrich and Radiah Jamil On a fall day outside Francis Scott Key High School in Carroll County, Md., a circle of chairs was arranged in the grass, where about 50 members of Sources of Strength took turns trading truths and seats. From the center of the circle, junior Sarah Myers introduced herself to...
‘Stop it! You’re making me sick!’: Moving documentary spotlights the pivotal battle to declassify homosexuality as illness
By Julianne Hill and Hermes Falcon Urban Health Media Project As recently as 1973, homosexuality was considered a “sexual deviancy” and gay people were classified as mentally ill by the American Psychiatric Association (APA). The LGBTQ+ community and its allies have activists such as Barbara Gittings and DC’s own Dr. Frank Kameny to thank for...
Missouri high school students recommend ways to improve school safety, student mental health
By Brie Zeltner and Malaya Mason St. Louis, MO - More licensed therapists on campus. Requiring parent or guardian participation in all school safety discussions. Implementing “calm rooms” where students can go to center themselves. Making every school inclusive and welcoming of students of all genders, sexual identities, races and abilities. These are just some...
Borough students talk mental health, racism in local high schools
By Brie Zeltner and Sarah Gandluri For Justin Soyka, the crisis came in middle school. During his 8th grade year, he survived two suicide attempts, and was hospitalized twice before he was able to get help for his depression, ADHD and crippling anxiety. “Growing up it wasn’t so easy not loving yourself and not being...
Staten Island high school students face racial segregation, bullying and mental health issues
By Pamela Rentz and Malaya Mason Youth leaders in high schools across Staten Island say that some of the biggest challenges facing their generation-- especially amidst the past two years of social unrest and a global pandemic-- are maintaining mental health and fighting racial inequities. Youth mental health issues have been on the rise since...
Missouri high school students call for more mental health services in schools to increase feelings of safety
St. Louis, Missouri -- Feeling safe in school was a problem in Missouri even before the pandemic added the unprecedented element of fear and anxiety of being exposed to a potentially deadly virus. As schools moved to remote learning, many of the daily concerns about physical safety in schools-- from bullying to school shooters-- decreased....