MBHS Students Organize a Walkout in Protest of Changes to the Wellness Center
On Friday, Jan. 24 at noon, a group of students marched out of their fourth period classes and into the quad to advocate for the wellness center on campus. Due to the recent budget cuts issued by the state, the wellness center’s counseling aide, Anna Walden, will be leaving MBHS on Feb. 14. This will result in the wellness center only operating at half capacity, meaning students will have less convenient access to the wellness center.
Just before the walkout, principal Scott Schalde made an announcement over the intercom addressing the issue, attempting to inform students that neither MBHS nor the San Luis Coastal district are attempting to target the wellness center or Walden. The announcement was informative in and of itself, but it didn’t prevent the students from participating in the walkout. In actuality, it may have motivated more students to come forward to protest.
At the protest, senior class president Lucy Fortini gave a short speech alongside ASB president Zahira Segler and wellness center advocate Lilly Martinez. Fortini said, “As a school, and as a community, everyone deserves to know what’s going on.” Her and her two peers went on to elaborate on what exactly is happening to the wellness center. Martinez said, “The wellness center is not fully closing. We’re still going to have Heather Willis in there, we’re going to have Brianna Biberston, but Anna Walden is losing her job on February 14th, and without her in there to watch all the kids, we can’t go in there to just take a breath and reset unless we’re being supervised by someone. So, you will have to go in there with a blue slip, and it will be running at half capacity.”
They continued to clarify that these changes are not a result of the admin’s influence. “It has nothing to do with our admin. Our admin is a great team. It’s not anyone’s fault, it’s all about funding,” said Fortini. The state of California has recently called for numerous budget cuts in education. These cuts have targeted the grant that was being utilized to fund Walden’s position at MBHS.
Despite the situation being far beyond the district’s control, students are still venting their frustrations. Senior Peyton Moon advocated strongly for Walden’s character. She said, “People need her. One time I was crying and I went over there and she was being a boss and helping me out. She’s a queen, she shouldn’t lose her job.” Moon isn’t the only student that’s benefited from Walden’s assistance. Martinez explained that there are 11 students that visit the wellness center daily to meet with Walden, and that’s not including duplicates.
A majority of students believe this reflects the state’s feelings towards the mental health of the youth. “There’s a pretty blatant disregard for the mental health of students,” said senior Devyn McLaughlin. Others resonate with this sentiment that mental health is being brushed aside, and income for the state is being prioritized. Seniors Nali Milne and Isa Rojas had their own concerns with the state’s intentions. Milne said, “It’s funny how they care so much about attendance, because that’s funding them, but they won’t fund the things that matter to us.” Similarly, Rojas said, “Out of all the things they could choose, they chose this, which is really important to our school. Why not go into sports that don’t receive as much attention?”
Overall, the walkout was a unified display of the student body’s passion for mental health awareness and assistance. Students are understanding of the tough position MBHS’s administration is in, but they aren’t hesitant to advocate for the fairness of Walden and their peers who rely on her assistance. Walden will still be leaving MBHS in a few weeks, but the impact she’s left on this campus is evident and students will continue to preach for her when she’s gone.