Built through a mix of grant funds and TAUSD allocations, the Wellness Center at Trinity High officially opened, adorning a student-produced logo.

What Is a Wellness Center?
Trinity High isn’t the first school in the county to open a Wellness Center. There is a center at Weaverville Elementary and Wellness Rooms at Burnt Ranch, Douglas City, and Lewiston. These are multi-purpose mental health spaces. Students can join learning groups, work on individual plans for self-improvement, or use the space temporarily to manage their behavior.

“It has been terrific to have an opportunity for students to have a space to decelerate their emotions, sort out challenges that they may be having in the school day, and a location where students can confide in other caring adults on a periodic basis, as needs arise,” said Trinity High Principal Corey Helgesen.

The Trinity County Office of Education (TCOE) is working with Trinity County Behavioral Health and hoping to get more grant funding. They want to expand and add Wellness Centers to more schools that are part of TCOE’s Wellness programs.

Students Choosing to Visit
For general visits, students are welcome to sign in to the Wellness Center during breaks such as lunch and after school. Trinity High also implemented a software program called Sown to Grow, which provides multiple social-emotional tools for students and also allows students to request a visit at the Wellness Center, according to Helgesen.

During class periods students can come to the center with their teacher’s permission. The student must have a specific reason to speak with Wellness Center staff or can use the space to regain control over their behavior. Once Wellness Center staff have determined that a student’s needs have been met, the student is sent back to class. 

“We are vigilant that Wellness Centers are used as a support, not an escape from their behavior or enabling,” said Jade Tyner, TCOE director of special programs. “These Centers are about providing a way to support students through overwhelming feelings while still holding students accountable to attend class and meet the expectations of their teachers, staff and campus.”

Student Learning Groups
The Wellness Center also hosts learning groups, which last typically 6-8 weeks in length and have no more than 15 students per group.  The first group at Trinity High, for example, will focus on peer support, with the goal of identifying and training lead students to attend and co-facilitate other Learning Groups throughout the school year.

The Learning Group topics for the school year can include topics like: managing anxiety, digital citizenship, discrimination, life skills and self-care, anger management, depression, and relationships.

Restorative Programs
Students can also be referred to the Wellness Center by staff when experiencing difficulties and are in need of support through a restorative program.

A restorative program is educationally focused, in which a student works with a Wellness Liaison from TCOE to have an explorative conversation to assess the student’s understanding of the issue, social-emotional history, and any other factors as it relates to the topic and behavior of the student. This conversation is used to determine if the student needs further support or resources from a clinician.

The Wellness Center can also be used by administration to enact restorative practices when a student exhibits behavioral concerns and/or violates school policy. These could be short- or long-term agreements that aim to restore harm that may have been a result of the student’s choices or actions.

If you have questions about Wellness Centers in the county, you can contact TCOE Director of Special Programs Jade Tyner at jtyner@tcoek12.org or 530-623-2861 ext. 244.