On Thursday, March 13, 2025, Huron High’s Peer 2 Peer team will be holding a mental health assembly, with the theme: “Talk about it. Mental health matters.” This year, the assembly aims to encourage students to seek healthy coping mechanisms and openly discuss their mental health.
Peer 2 Peer, a student-led group, dedicates a place for students to feel comfortable sharing their feelings. Lamar Ashford, a senior P2P counselor, is committed to this idea.
“It’s a way of helping the students in the school feel more comfortable opening up and expressing themselves through other students,” Ashford said.
The program also seeks to eliminate stigma around seeking mental health by providing a place during the school day where students can find support and vent.
This year’s assembly focuses on unhealthy vs. unhealthy coping mechanisms. Caitlin Van Cleve, a P2P advisor and counselor at Huron, emphasizes the importance of finding outputs for stress.
“We’re covering how talking about it [coping mechanisms] verbally or through the arts potentially is a healthy way to cope with stress and any mental health issues,” she explained.
Ashford, who played a major role in choosing the theme of “Talk about it. Mental health matters.”, hopes the assembly will remind students that it is beneficial to reach out when they are struggling with their mental health.
“It’s always healthy to talk about your mental health,” he said. “It’s beneficial in the long run and short run, and we really want to push that idea.”
From this assembly, both Ashford and Van Cleve are hoping to inspire students with a long-term message.
“This is something that almost everybody goes through and there are ways of getting through this that don’t hurt you as well,” Ashford explained. “I think what I personally want everybody to take away from this assembly is that you aren’t alone, it can get better, and there are healthy ways of helping yourself to feel better.”
To reinforce this message, the Peer Lab is inviting students to contribute to the mental health assembly by showcasing their talents in ways that promote positive mental health. Whether through singing, poetry, prose, or even dance, students are being encouraged to share how they use creativity as a coping tool.
