With a recent loss of participation, the UKnight for Minds program knew they had to make a few changes. The club is currently run by a group of students and two social workers: Chantel Smith and Karina Rodriguez. They accept any students to help and select a club president each year.
Their main focus over the past few years has been working on their newsletter. They sent out mental health advice in the Prospect monthly update emails, but they realized their articles were not reaching as many students as they wanted to.
Senior Andrew Astorino has found a lot of comfort in the club. They said that one of the most unique things about the club is that it offers a place for students at all points of the school day. They have a room where students can come relax and calm down when they are not feeling well mentally.
“A lot of students go to the nurse’s office or bathroom when they are having a rough day at school,” Astrorino said, “but this room is much more calming and peaceful.”
Astorino thinks that it is incredibly lucky that all Prospect students have the choice to attend the UKnight for Minds meetings that take place every Wednesday. This year the club president is Karla Heinking. Astorino believes that she is an understanding leader who is putting in a lot of effort to better the club and the people involved in it.
“The club has really helped my social life,” Astorino said. “My mental and physical health has improved so much from having a support system.”
The club has goals to start receiving more school-round participation. They take inspiration from bigger organizations such as The Happiness Project but in the past, they have sold apparel and not been very successful. Astorino mentioned that their newest, top idea is a raffle. The club members agreed that it would be much more realistic to sell one-dollar raffle tickets rather than fifteen-dollar shirts. Additionally, they have started making small, informational cards to pass out to students.
Social worker Karina Rodriguez has noticed that attendance numbers have been way down this year. Rodriguez thinks a big part of that is not enough advertisement for what they do. Rodriguez hopes that their new approach will let more students know what the club is doing to help.
Some common misconceptions about the club include that the club meetings work similarly to therapy sessions and that the club is only made up of students who have had personal experiences with mental health struggles. However, this is not the case. The main incentive of the members of UKnight for Minds is to better the community and help Prospect students feel seen.
The club prides itself on bringing together proactive and compassionate students to work towards improving the daily lives of people at Prospect. UKnight for Minds hopes that more students will be interested in attending their meetings and joining the club when more light is shined on the program.
“Our goal is to just help someone.” Astrorino said, “If we save one life, that is all we want.”
