Dear President,

We live in a society where everyone is facing difficulties in some aspect of their life. There are students who struggle when they get home and some students continue struggling when they step onto campus. National data shows that 7.1% of students do not attend school because they don’t feel safe. One of the reasons is due to bullying. Personally, I believe I am part of that 7.1%. There have been many days when I don’t want to get out of bed and go to school due to the fact that I do not feel safe or comfortable. If I had a comfort zone, or someone to talk to, like a teacher, going to school would be a lot easier for me. And I am sure the majority of my peers would agree or somewhat relate with me. It’s hard enough going to a school with 2,000 students. Now imagine going to school where half of those students are constantly bringing you down because of what you love, or because of what you look like. I don’t have to imagine it, I lived it.

Schools need to work on helping their students out with other things that don’t involve academic issues. Some teachers have the resources and the knowledge to lead their students towards the right direction. Furthermore, suicide rates increase in high school and one of the main reasons could be because they lack communication with their peers in and out of school. One out of twelve teens attempt suicide. Wouldn’t you want you put an end to this?

A small step of action can go a long way. The school board should encourage teachers to take some sort of mental health class so they can be more knowledgeable about what is going on with the teens at their school. If the school board doesn’t want to encourage taking a class maybe they can just speak to the teachers and inform them about situations where students didn’t feel safe in their environment. Maybe they can encourage a teacher to give a lending hand once in awhile.

In conclusion, students deserve to be helped. Students deserve to want to wake up the next morning looking forward to go to school. This goes far beyond just teaching a student the diameter of a circle. We are the future of this country. If you want to make America a better place, start with its future, the youth.

Sincerely ,

Shayna