This article is creepy. Why are the teachers so attached to the kids??

Dec. 11—JOHNSTOWN, Pa. — When Greater Johnstown Elementary School teacher Stacy Ford receives her class roster before the beginning of the year, she expects that at least a handful of the 20 or so students listed will not show up — and more will be gone by the end of classes.

Bracing for that reality is part of her preparation for any new term and has been for some time. The second-grade educator has taught at the district for more than two decades.

That constant turnover "creates havoc" for everyone involved, Ford said.

"Sometimes they leave and you don't even know they're leaving," she added. "They're just gone."

Ford is a 1990 graduate of Greater Johnstown High School who became a teacher because she enjoys helping children learn and wanted to make her community a better place. That's why she set her sights on her alma mater after college.

"That was always my goal," Ford said, "to get back into teaching there."

When Ford joined the staff, she said, there wasn't much of a transient population, and when she was a student, she graduated with nearly the same cohort of students she'd met when she started kindergarten.

That's not the case anymore.

Within the past three years, Greater Johnstown School District has seen 2,181 students enroll and 854 leave. The district has a total annual enrollment of roughly 3,000 students.

Nearly 400 new arrivals were from the Philadelphia School District — but dozens of others came from New York, New Jersey, Florida, Virginia and several other states, as well as almost 50 different Pennsylvania learning agencies. Additionally, the majority of the new learners had never attended school at Greater Johnstown, and those who left moved to other Pennsylvania institutions.

"It's crazy how many kids enter the school and then leave," Ford said.

'It's hard with the little kids'

Michael Silk, a reading and science educator at the middle school, has seen the same trend in his building. He's been teaching in the district for 29 years and, early on, didn't see many learners transferring in and out.

Recently, though, turnover has become the norm.

"In the last 10 years it has flip-flopped," Silk said. "You're constantly dealing with a transient population."

As for why there's such a level of transiency at Greater Johnstown, Ford said she's had parents tell her that if they receive public housing and live in Johnstown for a year, then they'll be moved up on the waiting list elsewhere in the state, such as in Philadelphia.

Silk said he has heard, like many in this area, that there are advertisements for housing in Johnstown placed in other cities. Area housing entities told The Tribune-Democrat that that is not happening.

The fluid nature of the classrooms throughout the district can be stressful for students and teachers alike.

"It's hard with the little kids," Ford said. "They build a family because they're together for hours and hours."

For her, the strain of losing students is just as bad. Not only does she think of her students as "her kids" each year, but also she dedicates a lot of time to their education.

https://www.tribdem.com/news/living-realities-in-transient-city-students-just-gone-teachers-say-they-often-work-hard-to/article_04962eda-52ad-11ec-ad83-cf59bf733bb8.html

It is often said that it takes a village to raise a child. Those of us who spend our professional lives working with children know that this statement couldn’t be any truer.

A village is a complex mechanism through which people join in the pursuit of a joint cause. In this same vein, Greater Johnstown School District partners with Communities in Schools of Pennsylvania (CISPA) to provide the best educational opportunities for its students.

Partnerships have become even more vital due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic that has seen an increase in mental health concerns of students across the country. These challenges can only be combated through the collective efforts of a village and GJSD has welcomed community partnerships to do just that.

Meeting the needs of students has long been acknowledged by public school professionals as a challenge that is not uniquely academic. However, recent data suggest that these needs have grown.

In a poll of 2,074 parents conducted by the JED Foundation in October 2020, six out of 10 parents indicated that their children had experienced mental or emotional health challenges in that month alone. Simultaneously, 31% indicated that their children’s mental health is worse than before the onset of the pandemic. With this increase, taking care of the holistic needs of students has become even further complicated.

The need for more support for students has not gone unnoticed. In the spring of 2021, a survey of 1,045 teachers was conducted by the RAND Corp. to measure the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on the public education system.

Of the 1,045 surveyed teachers, 92% indicated that they required some level of additional support to address the social and emotional needs of their students. Teachers cannot do it all. Despite the fact that guidance counselors and school administrators also jump into the fray, there are frequently not enough adult professionals in school districts to combat the growing student need.

Thankfully, school administrators agree with teachers, more support is needed. In the same RAND Corp. poll, 63% of the 1,183 school administrators surveyed indicated that they would rank staff that address students’ mental health in their Top 3 priorities for hiring purposes during the 2021-2022 school year.

Often, school districts do not have the manpower to adequately meet every individual need those students experience. To reiterate, it truly does take a village of support to raise a child and school districts are not ignorant of this.

With all of this in mind, GJSD welcomes partnerships into the district to give students the best opportunities to learn and grow.

https://www.tribdem.com/news/editorials/columns/it-takes-a-village-educational-partnerships-in-cambria-county-schools/article_a87d916e-5c21-11ec-b9c1-3b60e012fe01.html

Greater Johnstown School District Superintendent Amy Arcurio took the stand on Thursday and Friday to testify in a three-week-old trial over the state’s funding of schools.

“Our challenge is that we lack capacity,” Arcurio said early on.

She defined that as a lack of resources to properly educate children and said the way to remedy the issue is for more funding to be provided so Greater Johnstown can hire more teachers, specialists and others.

The school leader spent all of Friday, beginning at 9 a.m., sharing her experience at an underfunded Pennsylvania school and how the lack of funds affects education there.

The lawsuit was initially brought against state officials, including Gov. Tom Wolf and legislators, on the premise that they are not upholding their state constitutional responsibility to provide “a thorough and efficient system of public education.”

Greater Johnstown is one of the original six school districts to file the legal action in 2014 along with parents, students, the Pennsylvania NAACP and an association of 150 rural and small schools. They are known in this case as the petitioners and those they’re suing as the respondents.

Arcurio was preceded in the trial by Matthew Stem, the former Pennsylvania Department of Education deputy secretary for elementary and secondary education, who helped oversee the state’s K-12 system. He testified for three days.

The superintendent briefly took the stand on Thursday, just before court adjourned for the day, to provide her background in education.

On Friday, Nicole Argentieri, a partner at the O’Melveny law firm – the petitioner’s counsel – provided direct examination for the majority of the time Arcurio was on the stand. She asked the superintendent about numerous topics regarding education at Greater Johnstown, including overcrowded classrooms, need for educational intervention, underfunding, teacher salaries and several other subjects.

The lawyer also questioned the local school leader about employee roles, such as reading specialists, and the physical state of the district’s buildings.

https://www.tribdem.com/news/greater-johnstown-schools-lack-funding-superintendent-testifies-at-trial/article_2a3ad236-53ab-11ec-817c-6b2c4039e05f.html

JOHNSTOWN, Pa. – Following the arrests of two teenagers who authorities allege were planning a shooting at Westmont Hilltop Junior-Senior High School, school district officials around the area have taken the opportunity to examine their own safety plans.

That was before a national threat spread on the app TikTok prompted additional security measures on Friday.

“With regards to recent happenings, we have been reviewing our safety protocols with the staff and local police departments,” Ferndale Area Superintendent Jeffrey Boyer said.

Administrators held a meeting with Ferndale and West Hills police after the Nov. 30 school shooting in Oxford Township, Michigan.

“The meeting went very well, and it was nice to collaborate with both departments,” Boyer said. “Both departments plan to have a greater presence in both our buildings by conducting daily walk-throughs, which has already started.”

Ferndale previously had a school resource officer, or SRO for short, but the position remains open because the person who served in the role resigned. Since then, there has been a lack of applicants, Boyer said.

Looking ahead, the district will conduct more drills with the “multi-jurisdictional agencies and organizations in Cambria County,” he said.

Travis Robison, Ferndale High School principal, has worked with a group of students to train them in protocols related to the A.L.I.C.E. (Alert, Lockdown, Inform, Counter and Evacuate) safety program.

https://www.tribdem.com/news/be-vigilant-at-all-times-school-districts-review-security-plans-after-westmont-hilltop-arrests/article_0bcd33d4-5dce-11ec-8d54-c3e83c5ecc16.html

JOHNSTOWN, Pa. – Depression, anger and blame are often at the root of attacks on schools, psychotherapist Dan Ayers said, reflecting an alleged shooting plot involving Westmont Hilltop Junior-Senior High School.

Children are under a lot of pressure from a variety of sources, ranging from societal influences and home issues to academic forces.

“There’s many different things that contribute to a situation that ends in tragedy,” Ayers said.

Police say an attack at Westmont Hilltop was prevented when authorities intervened in an alleged school shooting plot by Logan J. Pringle, 17, of Conemaugh Township, Somerset County, and Preston R. Hinebaugh, 16, of Upper Yoder Township.

Several firearms allegedly were recovered from Hinebaugh’s residence by police. Pringle had been expelled from Westmont Hilltop in 2018 and had made threats against the school, according to police.

Ayers is a therapist and licensed clinical social worker at Nulton Diagnostic and Treatment Center, where he works with adolescent to geriatric individuals. He said that, generally, those who carry out attacks are “just assumed to have mental health struggles.”

However, he added that “certainly not everyone with mental illness is going to perpetrate a school shooting.” That’s rarely the case, he said.

https://www.tribdem.com/news/mental-health-professionals-many-factors-in-school-violence-a-modern-american-cultural-problem/article_64a038a8-5ea0-11ec-9fb5-8752f275289a.html

This piece was co-authored by NIMH director Joshua Gordon, M.D., Ph.D., and Rachel L. Levine, M.D., Assistant Secretary for Health, Department of Health and Human Services

It’s September, and kids are going back to school with their pens, pencils, books, and laptops—but this year, back-to-school is anything but ordinary. In addition to their school supplies, kids are also carrying the stress and uncertainty of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The pandemic has been challenging for many children, with some having experienced loss—be it the loss of a loved one due to COVID-19 or the loss of economic, food, or housing security. Many are experiencing the indirect effects of caregiver stress, which we know can impact children substantially. Kids are also dealing with the cumulative social effects of hybrid and remote schooling and the need for physical distancing, which may leave some feeling less connected with their peers and teachers.

As we recognize the many disruptions and stressors that children have faced over the last 18 months, we must also acknowledge that some children have been more affected than others—children from minoritized and underserved communities hardest hit by the pandemic are likely feeling the greatest impacts. For some youth, these impacts will be significant. The cumulative effects of these stressful experiences, especially if combined with other adverse childhood experiences, can pose serious risks to children’s mental health.

Emerging data from the pandemic suggest that many children are experiencing an increase in stress and other mental health concerns, including symptoms of anxiety and depression. Other serious illnesses may also be increasing. For example, initial reports indicate a greater number of teens have been experiencing challenges associated with eating disorders during the pandemic, and while larger studies are needed, these early findings are concerning.

https://www.nimh.nih.gov/about/director/messages/2021/supporting-kids-mental-health-during-covid-19

Harrisburg, PA – The Department of Health today urged all Pennsylvanians to support those affected by eating disorders by being aware of the signs and symptoms, as well as offering encouragement and connecting them to treatment.

“The warning signs of eating disordersOpens In A New Window vary, but generally include behaviors and attitudes that are fixated on weight loss, dieting or control of foods, bingeing or purging,” Secretary of Health Dr. Rachel Levine said. “Eating disorders are serious illnesses and are not lifestyle choices but are potentially life-threatening and impact all aspects of a person’s health. Anyone looking for support, information, referrals and guidance about eating disorders, either for themselves or a loved one, can contact the National Eating Disorders Association Helpline at 1-800-931.2237.”

There are three main types of eating disorders: anorexia, bulimia and binge eating disorder. Eating disorders affect individuals regardless of body shape, weight, gender identity and sexual orientation, ability, religion, socioeconomic status or stage of body acceptance. While eating disorders are typically thought to primarily affect young women, in recent years hospitalizations involving eating disorders for men have increased by 53%. In addition, 13% of women over the age of 50 exhibit eating disorder behaviors.

“Many of us are unaware of the devastating mental and physical consequences of these illnesses, as well as the attitudes and behaviors that shape them,” Dr. Levine said. “It is important that parents, educators, healthcare providers and community members are aware of the signs and symptoms of eating disorders”.

These illnesses usually appear in adolescence, and are associated with substantial psychological problems, including depression, substance abuse and suicide. The prevalence of eating disorders has continued to increase and is one of the top five most common illnesses among American teens. One person dies every 62 minutes as a direct result of an eating disorder.

Earlier this year, Governor Tom Wolf introduced a multi-agency effort and anti-stigma campaign, Reach Out PA: Your Mental Health Matters, aimed at expanding resources and overall support of mental health and related health care priorities. Reach Out PA will address many recommendations for improving mental health services. Those who may be suffering from psychological problems associated with an eating disorder need to know it is okay to not be okay, and that there are resources and individuals to help them.

https://www.media.pa.gov/Pages/Health-Details.aspx?newsid=722

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Before joining the governor’s administration, Levine worked for two decades at Penn State Health’s Milton S. Hershey Medical Center.

One of the people Levine mentored during her time at Penn State was Lori Frasier, now chief of the Division of Child Abuse Pediatrics at Penn State Children’s Hospital. Frasier met Levine when Frasier joined the medical school’s faculty in 2013, she said, and was immediately impressed.

Frasier was thrilled when she heard of Levine’s nomination, adding she has regularly listened to her former colleague’s coronavirus news conferences and thought Levine provided calm, confident leadership throughout the pandemic. “I would expect that’s one of the reasons why Biden tapped her.”

Frasier also praised the comprehensive child-and-adult eating-disorder treatment program Levine established at Penn State, an “impressive” program that incorporates mental and physical health. Levine has “tremendous experience” caring for people who are experiencing mental health crises, Frasier added, and that experience will be useful amid a pandemic that has left so many, including children and young adults, struggling.

https://www.inquirer.com/news/rachel-levine-joe-biden-secretary-health-transgender-pennsylvania-tom-wolf-inauguration-20210119.html