“Good habits formed at youth make all the difference.” - Aristotle
At the Flawless Foundation, prevention is at the core of all of our work in mental health advocacy. Prevention means beginning at the true beginning: changing the culture and conversation around this important topic. One of the best places to start is in schools with young people because it gives us an opportunity to introduce an alternative, more inclusive, more holistic paradigm for understanding and approaching brain health.
Over the past two days, we had an incredible opportunity to inspire this kind of shift, as we brought together students, parents, faculty, and community members at Oxbridge Academy in Florida for talks with mental health advocate, Ross Szabo.
Ross is the CEO of the Human Power Project, a company that develops cutting-edge mental health curriculum, as well as the author of Behind Happy Faces, a guide to mental health for young adults. Finally, as he demonstrated over the past two days, he is a dynamic speaker with a gift for fostering openness and curiosity around a topic that is not easily discussed.
Between a public talk and an assembly for the students, we had inspiring conversations with Oxbridge students, faculty, and parents, reflecting not only an interest in and enthusiasm for talking about mental health, but also the attitude of compassion and respect that is pervasive at this special school. Like Flawless, Oxbridge leads with the philosophy of seeing the perfection in everyone, not just in words, but in actions.
We gained so many insights from these talks -- from lessons for parents, to ideas for how schools can change their culture around mental health, to practical suggestions for teens in staying balanced. We also saw an example of a revolutionary school environment. With research showing that 70% of high school students are tired, bored, and stressed in school, the vibrancy and health of the students and school community at Oxbridge is striking. Our visit gave us much to think about and share, so stay tuned -- we’ll be launching a video and blog series on how we can promote meaningful change for our young people and, together, create a more flawless world.