Living drug-free was the theme of the week for California students.
California schools recognized Red Ribbon Week weekdays last week, and teachers and faculty hosted a variety of events and activities to coincide with this year’s theme: “Life Is A Puzzle, Solve It Drug Free.”
California High School Principal Jeffrey West said with all of the challenges high school students face on a regular basis, promoting a positive and healthy lifestyle is something the schools prioritize year round.
“We focus a lot, all the time, on good decision-making and wellness,” he said. “It’s not about the five days, it’s a consistent partnership with our families and our kids about making good choices.”
Red Ribbon Week is a nationwide drug-use prevention campaign created in the ’80s by the National Family Partnership. The partnership’s mission states its goal is “to lead and support our nation’s families and communities in nurturing the full potential of healthy, drug-free youth” through awareness, advocacy and resources.
California schools adjusted their programming to fit different age groups. Elementary students participated in a poster-drawing competition to illustrate creative ways to make positive, healthy choices. Moniteau County school resource officers chose a winner from each class and an overall school-wide winner.
Kindergarten: Jordyn Wickham
First Grade: Argo Stauffer
Second Grade: Kamryn Gieck
Third Grade: Eleanor Anderson
Fourth Grade: Elijah Castro
Overall: Daphney Floyd
California Middle School students participated in educational activities that demonstrated the negative effects of drug impairment. Students put on blood-alcohol-content goggles and attempted to complete tasks with their vision and senses impaired.
Another event the middle school held during the week was “I Can, You Can, We Can: Being Drug Free Comes in Cans” food drive. All three schools enlisted the help of their families to gather canned items for the Giving Tree, food pantry and food box program. California Middle School students gathered around 110 canned items.
Health teacher Ashley Anderson at California High School focused her lessons during Red Ribbon Week on the effects of specific types of drugs and the negative consequences that arise from them. Students broke into pairs and taught their classmates about the drug they were assigned.
“Our whole class revolves around decision-making,” Anderson said. “I think as things come into our society, we have to talk about it and teach about it.”
Alongside drug-use prevention, Anderson’s class advocates for healthy living in other areas of life as well. Her students coordinated with the student council and school counselors to create signs around the school with positive messages and words of encouragement.
“We talk about dimensions of wellness, and then we talk about mental health disorders and suicide prevention,” Anderson said. “If you see these warning signs, go up and have a conversation with them. So hopefully they’re more open about it.”
California High School counselors Heather Martin and Diana Norris feel that a greater societal emphasis has been placed on youth mental health in the years since the Covid-19 pandemic. The social isolation posed a difficult challenge for still-developing young students.
“Whether you knew it or not, there was some sort of mental, emotional or physical … after effect or current effects (for everybody),” Martin said.
The two of them reiterated West’s assertion that students’ health and well-being does not stop and start with Red Ribbon Week each year. Helping students overcome challenges they may be facing outside the classroom is a point of emphasis for the school at all times. Teachers and faculty look to form a personal connection with students to earn their trust and make them feel comfortable opening up to them.
“We try to be visible. We’re always kind of out and about. Our doors are always open,” said Norris.
“We did a thing, I think it was last year, where I had our staff put a check mark by every kid they knew. Because the goal is to find out who do we not know,” said West.
