The Watertown Youth Coalition (WYC) Peer Leaders, part of Wayside Multi-Service Center, helped provide some relief to fellow students during mid-term exams week, the group announced.
WYC Peer Leaders set up a Relaxation Station in the lobby of Watertown High School each day of exam week offering tea, hot chocolate, snacks, relaxing coloring pages, and tip sheets on how to beat exam stress. A large coloring mural provided the opportunity for community collaboration and more coloring.
Large crowds of students and some teachers visited the table and had great things to say about having this support provided during the stressful week. The Relaxation Station was a huge success, with both students and school faculty asking if it will be back for final exams week.
In Watertown’s 2014 Youth Risk Behavior Survey Results, 85.7 percent of responding students identified “Academic Stress” as a personal challenge. (“Body Image” was the second most common personal challenge, identified by 38.5 percent of students.) WYC Peer Leaders identified exam week as a particularly stressful time in students’ lives and created the Relaxation Station to progress the Watertown Youth Coalition goal of helping their peers to increase positive coping skills in response to stress in their lives.
WYC Peer Leaders would like to thank everyone who visited the table, WHS administration for supporting the idea, WHS Food Services for providing hot water each day, Whole Foods Market for donating the coloring mural, and the staff at Wayside Multi-Service Center for helping to provide staffing, materials and supplies.
You can support future WYC Peer Leaders activities by donating to the Watertown Youth Coalition here: bit.ly/supportwyc
About Watertown Youth Coalition
The Watertown Youth Coalition (WYC), overseen by Wayside Multi-Service Center, is a community coalition of youth, parents, residents, educators, police officers, medical professionals and local business owners committed to promoting healthy and positive lifestyles among Watertown youth.
Contact Dawn Graham, WYC Peer Leader Advisor, at dawn_graham@waysideyouth.org or 617-926-3600 x2642 with any questions or for additional information about the WYC Peer Leadership Program.
About Whole Foods Market
Founded in 1978 in Austin, Texas, Whole Foods Market (wholefoodsmarket.com, NASDAQ: WFM), is the leading natural and organic food retailer. As America’s first national certified organic grocer, Whole Foods Market was named “America’s Healthiest Grocery Store” by Health magazine. The company’s motto, “Whole Foods, Whole People, Whole Planet”TM captures its mission to ensure customer satisfaction and health, team member excellence and happiness, enhanced shareholder value, community support and environmental improvement. For more company news and information, please visit media.wfm.com.