Youth Mental Health PROJECt

In 2024, Southwest Michigan Journalism Collaborative was awarded a collaborative reporting grant by Solutions Journalism Network to focus on youth mental health. The grant comes on the heels of the SWMJC’s successful two-year Mental Wellness Project, funded by Solutions Journalism Network, which produced 75 stories on mental health topics in the region, including 47 that were translated into Spanish. In addition, with the U.S. Surgeon General’s recent advisory report on the impact of social media on youth mental health, the importance of covering current solutions to address this issue became even more evident.

Read the U.S. Surgeon General’s “Social Media and Youth Mental Health” report here.

Media Projects

How to Discuss Mental Health Needs With Adults

Audio gathered by students in the Fall 2024 Multimedia Journalism course at Western Michigan University.

Western Michigan University students from Fall 2024 Multimedia Journalism Course.

In September, students in the Fall 2024 Multimedia Journalism course at Western Michigan University conducted a student-on-campus audio project, interviewing fellow students about youth mental health and how to speak to an adult about the need for mental health support. The project was led by Sue Ellen Christian, the WMU Presidential Innovation Professor in Communication, and is part of the Southwest Michigan Journalism Collaborative’s youth mental health project supported by Solutions Journalism Network.

Tips From and For Young Adults and Teens
  • Ask parents about their own struggles to create a level of understanding and humanity.
  • Choose a calm, non-emotional time to discuss mental health issues, avoiding times when parents are exhausted from work.
  • Overcome the fear to ask for help. Taking the first step can be a significant breakthrough.
  • Reach out to school staff or friends, if parents are not open to talking about mental health.
  • Be direct and ask for help on specific issues. Trust that your parents are there to support and love you.

Check Out The Latest Stories From This Project

As youth struggle with mental health, treatment using horses is helping

A counselor trained in equine-assisted therapy, Federinko says working with horses can provide an avenue for building self-esteem and confidence; for teaching problem-solving skills, impulse control, and emotional awareness; and for helping kids – as well as adults — learn how to build trust and empathy.

Uncovering Adverse Childhood Experiences and trauma-informed care intervention helps children thrive

The ACE scoring method is illuminating the relationship between stresses that children face that lead to public health problems later in life and the importance of preventing ACEs before they happen, a cause being promoted by a number of organizations across the region.

Adolescentes en crisis mental encuentran alivio en musicoterapia

Los musicoterapeutas utilizan la música para lograr objetivos no musicales específicos para cada paciente, dice Deanna Bush, instructora y coordinadora de experiencias clínicas estudiantiles en el programa de musicoterapia de WMU. Durante una clase de improvisación musical de verano, rodeada de una selección de instrumentos que iban desde sonajeros con cuentas hasta tubanos similares a bongós, Bush instruyó a dos estudiantes para que representaran una discusión utilizando xilófonos de madera en miniatura. Luego, los estudiantes discutieron lo que habían sentido durante el combate musical.

As teens experience mental health crisis, music therapy is one way they are finding help

Music therapists use music to achieve non-musical, patient-specific goals, says Deanna Bush, instructor and coordinator of student clinical experiences in the WMU music therapy program. During a summer music improvisation class, surrounded by a selection of instruments ranging from beaded shakers to bongo-like tubanos, Bush instructed two students to depict an argument using miniature wooden xylophones. Afterward, the students discussed what they felt during the musical combat.

[LISTEN] As teens experience mental health crisis, music therapy is one way they are finding help

Music therapy helps teens identify, verbalize, and study their emotions, empowering them to change the way they act and feel, says Hannah Joseph, a clinical social worker and music therapist specializing in therapeutic support for children and adolescents at Kalamazoo Child and Family Counseling. Listen to this story on WMUK.

Do you have questions or story ideas?

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Funding Partners

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