Welcome to the Stressbusters Committee
Recent Events:
April 26, 2012: Mindset Panel Discussion. A five-person panel met at Whitman to discuss Dr. Carol Dweck's bestselling book, Mindset: The New Psychology of Success.
Mindset was chosen by Dr. Joshua Starr, MCPS Superintendent, for his first
county-wide book discussion earlier this year. This discussion was a
follow up to that event. A summary of the discussion can be found here and a handout summarizing the important lessons of mindset can be found here.
March 13, 2012: For the third year in a row, the Stressbusters
Committee hosted a talk by Marty O’Connell, Executive Director of Colleges That Change Lives. Her calming, insightful presentation on
choosing and applying to colleges that will best fit each
student was once again very well received. The information in her presentation is especially helpful for
juniors and their parents as they research and refine their college
lists. For more information please visit the CTCL website.
November 2, 2011: The Stressbusters Committee along with the PTSAs of Whitman, Walter Johnson, and BCC hosted Dr. Brad Sachs to speak on the topic Raising a Good Enough Teen. Approximately 450 parents and community members attended. The event was written up in The Bethesda Magazine and a copy of the Power Point presentation used during his talk is available by clicking here. Dr. Sachs is a psychologist, educator, consultant and best-selling author
specializing in clinical work with children, adolescents, couples, and
families.
Why Stressbusters?
As they approach early adulthood, high school students typically experience increasing levels of stress from a variety of sources. This is normal. However, while constructive stress motivates students in healthy ways, intense or long-lasting pressures can lead to stress overload that negatively affects success in school and in life.
Some things that can overwhelm students’ ability to cope if they continue for a long time include:
- Overloaded schedules with insufficient time to rest, relax, sleep or eat properly;
- Grief caused by the death of a loved one or the end of an important relationship;
- Struggles with schoolwork, including those caused by learning differences;
- Being bullied or witnessing bullying;
- Inordinate pressure to “succeed” and too much focus on the future as opposed to the present.
Goals
The Stressbusters Committee works with Whitman administrators, teachers, counselors, students, and parents to accomplish its two primary goals:
1) Stress Resilience: Empowering parents and students to constructively cope with the normal stresses of the high school years.
2) Stress Mitigation: Identifying and reducing excessive sources of stress.
To help parents and students cope with stress, we provide written information, speaker events, and opportunities for parent networking on topics such as student health and well-being, balancing school and other life priorities, course selection, managing homework, study skills, gap years, college fit, relationships, bullying, cyber-citizenship, and related issues.
To mitigate excessive sources of stress, we work with the Administration and Counseling Departments to reduce, eliminate, or adjust factors at school that are causing excess stress to the extent they are within our control.
Accomplishments
Stressbusters is a subcommittee of the Counseling Advisory Committee and was formed in 2004. Since that time we have:
- Created and published the Whitman Parents’ Road-map for the High School Years, a document with information and advice related to each of the four years of high school.
- Compiled a list of Mental Health Assistance Providers and Organizations in Montgomery County, and made it available on the website and in the Counseling Department.
- Published a Brochure describing stress reduction tips, recommended reading, and useful websites about adolescent stress. This brochure is also available in the counseling department.
- Surveyed students to determine homework loads in Advanced Placement (AP) classes and made results available through the Counseling Department for students to use when developing their schedules.
- Surveyed students at Whitman about their major sources of stress and used the results to help set priorities for our committee.
- Organized a variety of meetings, speakers, and book discussions for parents and students about stress, “overachieving,” homework, sleep, depression, and related issues. Click here to see notes from the presentation in April, 2011 by Dr. Ron Taffel.
- Generated “Tip Sheets” for students and parents about a wide variety of stress-related issues and common questions related to life at Whitman. These tips sheets are available on the Whitman website and in the Counseling Department, and handed out at relevant school meetings.
- Arranged for plan-books to be made available to students in all grades to assist with time management and organization. They are regularly provided to all freshmen.
- Produced an information sheet about taking a “gap year” between high school and college, and sponsored information sessions for parents and students about gap-year options and considerations.
- Worked with the Administration to encourage more teaching of high school level study skills in classes, especially freshmen classes. In 2009/10, arranged study skills workshops for parents and students. Worked with the Student Government Association (SGA) to produce study skills videos which are shown during school.
- Worked with the SGA and parents to connect more kids to after-school activities.
- Tried to institute a homework-free weekend for seniors to work on college applications, but this initiative did not work out and was dropped in 2008.
- In conjunction with the Counseling Department and Administration, raised awareness among parents and students about the numerous college choices that exist and the wide variety of schools that Whitman students attend.
- Arranged yoga and meditation classes for students and staff.
- Created a space in the Counseling Department where books and resources on issues relevant to high school students and stress management can be checked out by parents or students.
- In 2010-11, co-sponsored Every Fifteen Minutes (EFM), a school-wide
program that engaged students in learning about the hazards of drinking
and driving.
Ongoing work
Parents on the Stressbusters committee meet regularly with Administration and Counseling Department staff to find new avenues for keeping the social, emotional and academic climate at Whitman as healthy as possible. We are always interested in hearing new ideas and suggestions.
For more information
Please feel free to contact any of the following members of the Stressbusters committee for further information or to bring issues to our attention:
Beth Moses, Parent Co-Chair, moses.yang@verizon.net
Karen Judson, Parent Co-Chair, bszjudson@comcast.net
Laurie Levy-Page, Parent Co-Chair, l.levypage@gmail.com
Amy Golen, agolen@verizon.net
Katherine Doyle, kmdoyle@fcps.edu
Marcy Berger, marcygberger@gmail.com
Miriam Chernick, roruma@msn.com
Sandy Lederman, sglederman@aol.com
Shirley Brandman, sdbhms@verizon.net
Anne Hollander, Ex-officio member, annekhollander@gmail.com
Bekki Sims, Ex-officio member, bboo730@gmail.com
Ms. Fran Landau, head of Whitman Counseling Dept., Frances_R._Landau@mcpsmd.org