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Students at Mill Woods elementary school will no longer have to fear mental-health problems. There are some troubled teenagers who can open up to their teachers about mental-health issues that they may be having. But there are also teens who keep these issues all bottled up, even when teachers can see the signs. Teachers can observe depressed teens at their desks, those that prefer isolation rather than hanging out with other classmates, and also those teens whose interest in school takes a nosedive. Some troubled teens may even just stop coming to school altogether.

There could be a number of reasons behind these signs of mental-health problems—issues at home, problematic parents, alcoholism, or violence. Recently, Mill Woods students dealing with mental-health problems can find a haven in A Safe Place at Dan Knott junior high.

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This classroom, assigned specifically for helping prevent mental-health issues, is a joint effort of Edmonton Public Schools and Capital Health. It helps those troubled teens from  Dan Knott, T.D. Baker, and Edith Rogers schools.

Principal at Dan Knott, Janet Hancock said, "The bottom-line goal is to help children be successful at school. We've already had one boy saying, 'Oh, good, I'll be there a lot.' "

A Safe Place is also a haven for those students who are transitioning back to high school life once the outpatient treatment for issues like depression, ADHD disorder, or mood disorders are complete. It can be difficult to return immediately to the aura of high school class life once a troubled teen is freshly out of treatment but A Safe Place will provide these teens with a classroom where they can transition comfortably. 

Capital Health's regional director for child and adolescent psychiatry and suburban and area clinics, Brian Malloy said, "The primary goal (for the second group) is to keep them really connected to their home, to their community, to their school, and to maintain their friendships."

The class can have the capacity for up to 6 students at one time. The room also includes a psychiatric nurse that refers teens to agencies if in need of it. The amount of time a troubled teen spends in the room may depend on the type of aid they need. It can vary from 2 weeks to 4 months, after which they will return to regular class.

A Safe Place, Room 103, has a calming aura to it as it even is in the color of a meadow green.

 
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