Oasis Middle School staff speak about students’ mental health struggles

Staffers at Oasis Middle School spoke to WINK News about what is hurting students on the inside amid the regular trials of school and discussion of the dangers presented by gun violence.

Going to school is hard enough already, between peer pressure, social media, the pandemic and the pursuit of academic achievement. It all takes a toll on children. The school shooting in Uvalde, Texas, has once again put a spotlight on children’s mental health and how best to get them help. WINK News anchor Corey Lazar spent some time at Oasis Middle talking to teachers, counselors and the principal to get an inside look at how they are trying to help their students.

School counselor Amanda Kendrick and social worker Tiffany Corbin opened up about the number of students suffering. They say these kids at Oasis Middle, still at such a young age, are already reaching out for help. Kendrick has an online form students can fill out for requests to see her. 25 to 30 forms usually come in every single week.

“It comes to me and they kind of rank the severity of it, like if it’s, you know, it’s an emergency, they’re suicidal, they’re not going to make it through the day,” Kendrick said. “I think with COVID, and being home for so long, that they kind of missed a piece of problem-solving skills. They didn’t get to sit down face to face and sort through any issues.”

The Florida Department of Health released results from a middle school behavioral survey. More than 4,500 children from the 6th, 7th and 8th grades took the survey. One of the biggest issues was the number of kids wanting to lose weight and trying to do something about it: 51% of 13-year-olds said they are trying to lose weight, and a little more than 25% of 13- and 14-year-olds were going without eating for 24 hours or more to do so.

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