Marysville Appeal-Democrat

GUEST VIEW Lindhurst High School opens 1st student support and wellness center

- By Fal Asrani, ED.D. Superinten­dent of Marysville Joint Unified School District

Did you know that Lindhurst High School is the first school in the Marysville Joint Unified School District to open a wellness center to serve students and families?

In partnershi­p with the Yuba County Office of Education and Health & Human Services Department, the student-named “Lindhurst Support Center” is fully designed to provide wellness services for students and families at Lindhurst High School. We held a ribbon cutting ceremony for the space this week as we returned from the holiday break.

MJUSD recognizes this wonderful opportunit­y to provide more resources for our students and create a safe space for them. Thank you to Yuba County Superinten­dent of Schools Dr. Francisco Reveles and his team for their commitment and support to our students. I would be remiss if I didn’t mention Health and Human Services Director Jennifer Vasquez and Bi-county Health Officer Dr. Ngoc-phuong Luu, who worked to acquire the funding to design and build this program in an effort to expand wellness access across the county.

Conversati­ons are underway about opening similar wellness centers at other sites across the district. Since January

2022, MJUSD has offered families access to a network of physicians through Care Solace, an organizati­on that links students, staff, and/or family members seeking mental health care to medical providers free of cost. To learn more about the Care Solace services, visit www.mjusd.com and look under the “parents” tab.

This past December, the MJUSD Board also approved the appointmen­t of longstandi­ng elementary school Principal,

Mr. Rob Gregor, as the new Director of Wellness for the district. His team includes nurses, health aides, mental health service providers, as well as behavior interventi­onists and outreach consultant­s, all who work to help us address the uptick in mental health concerns we have seen across the district in the past two years. Since returning in 2021 from the pandemic-related school closures, our teachers, administra­tors and support staff have shared their concerns about students’ emotional and mental wellness and its direct effects on student success.

Across the nation the growing mental

health crisis has affected families and schools and MJUSD is committed to designing a robust Wellness Program to meet our commitment for student wellness, which continues to be a top priority for the district. If you need any assistance with mental health related questions or services, please contact Mr. Rob Gregor at 530-7496451.

Lastly, I would like to wish our community a wonderful New Year, filled with kindness, love and generosity toward one another.

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