Strengthening Youth Mental Health Through Prevention and Partnership
This summer, Herren Project brought Youth Mental Health First Aid to Quabbin Regional Middle High School in Barre, Massachusetts, where educators, school counselors, and administrators used part of their summer break to strengthen their ability to support the social, emotional, and mental well-being of their students.
Their willingness to invest this time speaks to their commitment to students and reflects the strength of the partnership between Quabbin Regional Middle High School and Quabbin Community Cares.
Together, they have built a collaborative approach centered on youth well-being, substance use prevention, and mental health awareness. Funding received by Quabbin Community Cares through the Drug Free Communities grant made the training possible, allowing the organization to invest directly in the educators who support young people every day.
Preparing Adults to Recognize and Respond
Youth Mental Health First Aid is an evidence-based training from the National Council for Mental Wellbeing that teaches adults how to identify, understand, and respond to signs of mental health and substance use challenges among young people. According to the National Council for Mental Wellbeing, one in five teens and young adults lives with a mental health condition.
This reality underscores the importance of preparing the adults surrounding young people to recognize when something may be wrong, respond with compassion, and know what steps to take next.
Herren Project’s certified Mental Health First Aid instructors deliver Youth, Teen, and Adult Mental Health First Aid trainings, helping strengthen a community’s network of support across generations.
At Quabbin Regional Middle High School, Youth Mental Health First Aid equipped educators, counselors, and administrators with practical tools to recognize and respond to mental health and substance use challenges among young people.
One of the key takeaways was the ALGEE action plan, a practical framework that helps participants approach mental health and substance use concerns with greater understanding and confidence.
Assistant Principal Jason Gilmartin identified ALGEE as a resource he expects to remember and use. He also emphasized the importance of developing a self-care plan and committed to watching for warning signs among the school’s young people and taking action when concerns arise.
Anastasia Macutkiewicz, Licensed Mental Health Counselor and an Adjustment Counselor for the district’s alternative high school, highlighted the importance of making resources visible and accessible. She identified the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline, which offers free, confidential support by phone, text, and chat, and local supports, including the school resource officer and Quabbin Community Cares, as valuable resources for students and staff.
Anastasia’s next step is to ensure that her team understands what support is available and that students can easily find it through tools such as QR codes, scheduled groups, and other resources throughout the school.
Michelle Bowen, the Middle School’s Physical Education Teacher, reflected on another critical lesson: the importance of asking direct questions when there is concern about a young person’s safety. She identified learning to ask whether someone is thinking about suicide, rather than simply asking whether they are hurting themselves, as an important takeaway.
But perhaps her most powerful reflection was about confidence. Michelle shared that she would approach student check-ins with “a new confidence in my ability to go beyond ‘just’ caring and actually make a difference.”
That is the heart of Youth Mental Health First Aid.
Caring matters. But when caring is paired with knowledge, practical tools, and the confidence to act, it becomes an even more powerful form of support.
The Power of Partnership
The partnership between Quabbin Regional Middle High School and Quabbin Community Cares demonstrates what is possible when schools and community organizations work together toward a shared commitment to youth well-being. Their investment extends beyond a single training. It strengthens the network of support surrounding young people and helps create a culture where mental health, substance use prevention, and asking for help are part of the conversation.
For Nekr Jenkins, Drug Free Communities Project Coordinator for Quabbin Community Cares, that commitment is deeply personal. As a coalition dedicated to unifying support for youth, families, and the broader Quabbin community, Quabbin Community Cares understands the importance of ensuring that young people have adults they can turn to when they are struggling.
Reflecting on the educators, counselors, and administrators who participated in the training, Nekr shared:
“I want to say thank you to each of you for taking time out of your summer to attend the Youth Mental Health First Aid course. It means more than you may know to have people in our school and our community that are willing to help youth who are struggling with mental health. It has touched my life in the most profound ways this past year, and to know that there are others in our school who care just as deeply as I do really does mean a lot. Thank you.”
Nekr’s words capture something essential about prevention: the impact of this work extends beyond the training room. When caring adults are willing to learn, recognize warning signs, and step forward to help, they strengthen not only their individual relationships with young people but also the broader community of support surrounding them.
At Herren Project, we are proud to contribute to partnerships like this. Prevention is strongest when it is woven into the places where young people live, learn, and grow, and when schools and community organizations share responsibility for their well-being.
By equipping adults with practical tools, knowledge, and confidence, we can help create environments where mental health conversations are normalized, stigma is reduced, and asking for help is met with understanding and compassion.
Thank you to Quabbin Community Cares and Quabbin Regional Middle High School for their shared commitment to strengthening the network of care and support surrounding the young people in their community.
Bring Mental Health First Aid to Your Community
If your school, youth-serving organization, or community is ready to equip the adults who support young people with these important skills, connect with Herren Project to learn how Mental Health First Aid can become part of your prevention and youth well-being efforts.
Together, we can build communities where adults are prepared to act, young people know where to turn, and no one has to navigate a mental health or substance use challenge alone.
