LHS Community Conversations: Are They Worth It?
Each cycle, a small group of students spend their lunch blocks engaging in a round table discussion led by school counselors in Room 176. For 30-minute periods, students debate a variety of topics breaking down the toxic competitive culture of LHS and academic pressure on students. While some look forward to sharing their personal experiences, others go solely for the promised treat of donuts.
Affectionately dubbed “Donuts & Discussions,” the series of conversations are the Counseling Department’s newest way to address mental health issues within the student body. Community Conversations, as they are formally announced, occur once per cycle during the D3 lunch block and are available to students across all grade levels.
When the program first launched last year, my friends and I attended them regularly. I was excited to be part of an effort to make our school’s environment less stress-inducing for students. Both underclassmen and upperclassmen showed up to share their experiences: freshmen talked about the difficult adjustment to LHS grading in the first quarter, sophomores shared fears about finals, juniors admitted to overloading themselves with APs, and seniors, exhausted from finishing college applications, added in their own dismal anecdotes.
In our small room, the conversations we had were effective. We realized we all shared the common fear of falling behind academically—or of not being able to keep up with the students around us. Each of us burdened ourselves with too many extracurriculars, aimed for ‘prestigious’ leadership positions, and convinced our guidance counselors to let us take that extra AP class. But, this begs the question: how effective are these conversations beyond those 30-minute periods?
For starters, some students show up only for the donuts. They arrive ten minutes late into the period, eye a Boston Creme Donut, and offer one off-handed remark. For the students that do arrive passionate to participate, the effects of the conversation don’t linger beyond lunch. While I have realized that my peers share the same fears and anxieties as me, our conversations don’t actually change the environment of LHS. In a way, it seems performative. We talk about improving the relationships between students and grades, committing to less activities, and stressing less about the difference between 2 and 3 APs, but how many of us stick to these goals each day?
I am still guilty of being under the ‘influence’ or pressure to keep studying and sacrifice my mental health—a trait common among my peers. So, when can it end? As great as it is that the counseling department is attempting to mitigate this problem, Community Conversations isn’t creating tangible change. Of course, a group of eight (maybe twelve on a good day) high school students can’t suddenly reverse the academic pressure that has been shrouding LHS for decades. I personally think that while we aren’t creating school-wide change, it’s comforting for students to know that we are all struggling. No one, regardless of how stacked their LinkedIn or resume is, is perfect.
The pressure to succeed starts essentially when we are born. Many people start young, practicing a sport or instrument or taking accelerated math courses. Community Conversations isn’t attempting to stop students from being successful; instead, it’s attempting to convince students that they are worth more than their academic successes. It’s teaching us to view people as more than just their SAT/ACT, GPA, extracurriculars, or prestige of their college acceptances. Hopefully, it can convince that one freshman that they don’t need to create three nonprofits to get into an Ivy League school. For the students that want to change, Community Conversations offer them an outlet to be open and honest in a safe environment.
Conversations after all are only a starting point. I’ll keep showing up to the discussions, eating my customary Boston Creme Donut, and hoping to make a difference in our school community.
by ANONYMOUS