Committed to Assisting Students

Committed to Assisting Students is raising money this holiday season! 

When I was in high school, the pressure and stress was overwhelming. I developed chronic anxiety because of it. For this reason my friend Sam and I (Julia) have developed a program to teach stress management in various ways in an after school program. We want to put this program into schools and start the development of the organization, but we are lacking in one thing: donor support.

The livestream will raise money the day before Christmas (and Channukah) with an auction, performances, and some of our very own stress-less activities!

We have already been incorporated and are working towards the tax-exempt status, but we can’t start helping people without your support. 

The Facebook event is here

The Youtube stream link is here

Who we are Hi. My name is Julia. I’m a freshman at the University of Cincinnati, studying entrepreneurship and marketing. My partner, Sam, is going to get her Masters (of a custom program of psychology and education) in Corpus Christi in Texas. Together we are most passionate about creating a nonprofit program to help educate high school students on stress management and mental health.

What we’re raising money for Suicide is the second leading cause of death for people aged 12-18. We believe that this problem is due to the lack of intervention of stressors in student’s lives.  Committed to Assisting Students (CAS) is a program in the process of being created. Sam and I have been working together for several months now to come up with a product that will best assist high school and junior high students.

The CAS program will be a network of after school programs in high school and junior high. Sam is in the process of creating a series of lesson plans for a teacher to go through after school. They are mostly based around different ways to manage stress and the lessons are still connected to school subjects. We will offer these lesson plans to teachers who will be in charge of the after school program in their school.

The after school program we are creating focuses on stress management in order to stop and identify stressors before they get to a point of chronic mental illness. The importance of that focus is that most stressors turn into a mental illness when stress in a student’s life goes without treatment. By allowing earlier intervention of stress management, schools will be actively preventing serious mental illnesses from developing.

How the money will be used We had an organization that was test running the program in the schools they work with, however they have backed out on us mere weeks before the school year begins. We are left with only two schools testing the program, and very little time to find alternatives.

To bring this program to schools that need it, we need to have outreach that requires resources we cannot afford. We can’t look for grants at the moment because I am a full time student and Sam has a full time teaching job.

The money has already started going to paying off the Foundation Group, an organization that helps small start up nonprofits like us get incorporated and receive tax exempt status. As of 07/26/2016, we are incorporated in Texas. To pay off the rest of their services, we need about $1000 more.

The money will be used to pay off the rest of the Foundation Group services, and for marketing and outreach to bring the program to schools in Corpus Christi, TX, Cincinnati, OH, and Fairfax, VA (and any other areas we can). If possible, we would like to get the program set up in a few more schools 

Why this means so much to me In my high school district there has been unprecedented numbers of suicides in the past few years. At my school specifically, there hasn’t been anything done to try and help the friends of those students or to stop other suicides from happening.

Sam is passionate about this program because throughout the years of volunteer work in the school system; she can see the amount of pressure put upon our students, teachers, and counselors. She wishes to take a proactive approach to helping our communities reduce the amount of suicides, cutting, and other negative incidents that are affecting our communities.

This organization means more to me than I know how to express. The fact that it’s moving as fast as it is just shows how needed the program is in schools. I’ll be thankful to reach this goal because it means I’ll have a chance to help so many people struggling in high schools. Don’t donate for me, donate for the students you know that are dealing with mental illness or have died from suicide.

Other help you can give We really need schools to test the program. If you know of any schools that could use a program like this (that are in the US), let me know. If you are a teacher or student or alumni at one of those schools and can give us access to the administration, that is preferred.

(pardon the long title lol)

hi everyone, janie here!! in honor of reaching 200 followers last night (wow, thanks guys!!), i decided to create these tips for you because mental health is just as important as your physical health. i also created this because i don’t want anyone to go through what i went through.

although the title says ‘middle school’, i believe that this can be applicable anyone whether from college, high school, etc. lastly, i just want to say thank you to all the people who welcomed me here a few weeks back, so thank you!

((pls bear w me this is my first official ‘tips’ post!! please remember that i am just a student and not a professional so this is just a student-student thing 💓))

1. never compare yourself to others. i cannot stress this enough, to be honest. one reason why you should never compare yourself to others is because everyone works, thinks, acts, etc. differently. when it comes to studying, you should always do things at your own pace so as not to confuse you! (also when i stopped comparing myself to others, i began to learn how to accept who i truly am as a person 😊 )

2. acknowledge your mistakes, but don’t beat yourself up for it! we are not perfect people and that’s okay! we make mistakes but that’s perfectly fine too! making mistakes is part of life but they are there to help us learn and do better. but remember, it’s also okay to cry (we all need that good, hard cry once in a while). after that good, hard cry, always remember to pick yourself back up again and keep your head held up high!

3. never bottle up your feelings. literally please never do this. bottling up a bunch of emotions caused me to break - my mom felt so bad about seeing me so unstable because she knew that couldn’t do anything and i hate seeing her sad. if you don’t feel comfortable telling anyone how you feel, there are lots of other alternatives including writing them down in some sort of journal, blog, etc., having a good, hard cry, punching a pillow and more. and if you ever need a friend, a shoulder to cry on, etc. i’m always here for you. i may not reply right away, but i will be here to listen.

4. don’t force yourself to do anything if you are not relaxed enough. forcing yourself to do something if you are not ready will not lead to productivity. instead, you’ll feel even more tired and you won’t be able to focus on studying or doing anything well because you’re unwell! just go to rest and work when you feel like you are ready.

5. lastly, be patient with yourself! nothing will be given to you at a snap of a finger, although in a perfect world, it would. however, being patient with yourself will allow you to know yourself more - how you learn, how you communicate with others, your strengths, your weaknesses and so much more! being patient with yourself will help you reach your goals easier rather than forcing way too much things down your throat!