Anxiety And School Performance To Be Topic Of 'Building Bridges' Workshop
Following its successful Resource Fair in September, the Bourne Public Schools Building Bridges program is gearing up to host its second event. This time, it will be a Zoom workshop hosted by a renowned expert in the field.
The workshop will focus on anxiety and school performance and will be hosted by guest speaker David Gotthelf, PhD, NCSP. BPS families are invited to tune into the workshop, which will run on Wednesday, November 16, from 6:30 to 8 PM.
Dr. Gotthelf is a licensed school psychologist and special education administrator. He has more than 35 years of experience working in both school and clinical settings. He currently has a private practice where he provides both therapy and evaluative services, and is an adjunct professor at both Boston University and Northeastern University. He previously served as program manager for teenagers and young adults with ASD (autism spectrum disorder) at Massachusetts General Hospital’s Aspire Program.
BPS Superintendent Kerri Anne Quinlan-Zhou plugged the event at last week’s school committee meeting, and emphasized that those who are interested can join from the comfort of their own homes.
“This is a free webinar,” she said. “Even if you can only make it for part of the time, please register and tune in. We think it’s going to be exceptional.”
Lisa Dix, preK-5 curriculum director for BPS, has been at the helm of the Building Bridges program, which is a new iteration of a previous program she ran in a different school district. Ms. Dix has previously said that the community outreach initiative is designed to bring students, families and community members together and form mutually beneficial relationships.
In an email to the Enterprise, Ms. Dix said that Dr. Gotthelf was selected as a speaker through BPS’s membership in Mass Partnerships for Youth. Through that, Ms. Dix said that BPS has access to about five speaking engagements throughout the year on a variety of topics. This time around, she said, anxiety and its connection to children’s school performance were chosen as the area of focus.
“I chose anxiety because I feel this time of year (around the holidays) is always tough on our general mental health,” Ms. Dix said. “Also, we are in a recovery phase of sorts with respect to the pandemic. Parents and teachers are all trying to find their footing and regain the normalcy we had pre-pandemic. It’s been a tough line to toe.”
By nature, children are capable of tuning into and picking up on the moods and frustration of the adults around them, Ms. Dix said. This often manifests into negative behaviors as a form of communication in school which, in turn, can have an adverse impact on school performance.
All parents, caregivers and BPS staff members are welcome to attend the event. To register for the Zoom event, send an email to Ms. Dix at ldix@bourneps.org, and Ms. Dix will provide a link for the Zoom meeting.
Also at the school committee meeting, Dr. Zhou gave a walk-through of the new Building Bridges webpage, which can be found under the Parents/Caregivers tab. The page currently features a video from Bourne TV recapping September’s Resource Fair, information about upcoming events and more details on how the community outreach program factors into the District Strategy Action Plan.
As the year goes on, Dr. Zhou said, the Building Bridges webpage will be updated with recaps of past events, additional resources and upcoming events to make it “one-stop shopping for Building Bridges.”
Ms. Dix said that Building Bridges is already in the planning stages for its next event, which will likely be a multicultural festival in partnership with BPS’s Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Committee. Details are to come.