On Monday, October 28, staff members of Natrona County School District participated in a standard in-service training day. However, teachers and staff at Kelly Walsh had the unique privilege to participate in the Jae Foundation experience. 

Earlier this month, Kelly Kall staff writer, Daxton Thomas, brought light to the coming events of the Jae Foundation’s mission to prevent suicide and increase mental health awarness in Natrona County. Visit here to read more.

Wyoming is currently ranked number one in the United States for suicide deaths, and according to The Jed Foundation, “22% of high school students reported having seriously considered suicide in the past year.” Due to the close-knit relationships educators and administrators have with high school students, it’s important to bring awareness to these adults. 

The role of an educator is not easy. Teachers have to balance their primary teaching responsibilities with the additional task of supporting students’ emotional well-being. Additionally, the stigma surrounding mental health can make students reluctant to seek help, putting more pressure on educators to create a supportive and open environment. Because of the stress this can cause, teachers need a reminder to check-in on themselves too.

“Not only was this experience a time to do a boot check on our people, but it was a time to say: let’s do a boot check on ourselves. Sometimes a lot of us in education are so worried about taking care of everybody else and everything that we forget about ourselves,” said Christi Bekke who is a veteran teacher of many years and was moved to tears during the Jae Foundation presentation at Kelly Walsh. 

One of the most important messages that the Jae Foundation promotes is their core values representing Jae’s last name, Bing. The foundation was started in remembrance of him and the core values represent what he stood for. The ethics are B- bold, I- inclusive, N- nimble, and G- generous. Take a peek at the Jae Foundation website to learn more about what they do. 

Touching specifically on the value of inclusivity, Kelly Walsh’s principal, Mike Britt made sure his staff was involved in this entire process. As the Jae Foundation mainly reaches out to high school seniors, this special day was all about the hardworking high school educators of Natrona County. 

“It was really important that staff and students had a common language when we’re talking about such an important topic and reality for our community,” said Britt. 

Being connected as a school through this entire experience is what the Jae Foundation is all about. 

“I learned a lot about staff members that I’ve worked with for the last seven years that I didn’t know about until yesterday when I went through that training. It was eye opening for me in a really good way,” Britt said. 

Suicide prevention and mental health awareness are difficult topics to broach in many settings. With the help of the Jae Foundation Experience, reaching out for help and talking about the importance of mental health are now a little easier at Kelly Walsh High School.

The Jae Foundation will be back on campus in the coming weeks. Every senior will have the opportunity to hear about the foundation and its mission. Each senior will walk away from the Jae Foundation Experience with a brand new pair of cowboy boots and the confidence to “boot check” their mental health.