Beginning this Fall, all schools in New York State will have mandatory mental health classes. This makes New York State the first state to make mental health a part of the school curriculum.The law was passed in 2016 and officially became active on July 1st, 2018. What this means is that all elementary, middle, and high school students will be taught about identifying the signs during their regular gym and health classes.These lessons for these mental health classes are set to be structured around nine main points, that was provided in the guidelines by the New York State Mental Health Education Advisory Council, including providing resources, and breaking the stigma about mental health issues.According to the Anxiety and Depression Association of America stated that 18.1% of adults aged 18 and over suffer from anxiety disorders every year. They also stated that teens between the age of 13 and 18 have experienced mental health issues, most of them being severe.In an article posted on Daily Mail, State education commissioner, Mary Ellen Elia spoke about the importance of breaking the stigma surrounding mental health.’When young people learn about mental health and that it is an important aspect of overall health and well-being, the likelihood increases they will be able to effectively recognize signs and symptoms in themselves and others and will know where to turn for help – and it will decrease the stigma that attaches to help-seeking,’ she said.Share your thoughts about this law in the comments below.
Category: Awareness
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Artists Stand With DACA
It’s has been an unbelievable turn of events that this country has faced in a matter of weeks. Starting with the riot in Charlottesville, then Hurricane Harvey displacing many residents in Houston, Texas and now the removal of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals also known as DACA.On Tuesday, September 5th, 2017, Attorney General Jeff Sessions announced that DACA will be rescinded, which will have many children who came to this country under the age of 16 with their immigrant parents deported back to their countries. DACA was administered under former President Obama in 2012 to protect minors from deportation, and with it now being rescinded DACA recipients are in a panic. As protests started in the streets across the nation, Trump took to his Twitter account to threaten Congress that they have six months to make a decision before the issue is revisited.Many artists also went to their Twitter accounts to express how they felt about this harsh decision. See what they had to say below:
Other artists also voiced their opinion on this issue by partnering with Spotify to create a playlist to honor immigrants. These artists include Demi Lovato, Jared Leto, Daddy Yankee, Camilla Cabello and more. 
We stand with the Dreamers. -
Discovering Dopeness: Tobias Ellehammer
There has clearly been a lot of dopeness that has been taking place in the world of music lately and another discovery has been made with special thanks to Facebook. While doing the usual scrolling, I came across this page called DanceFloor and on it, I saw the most beautiful thing ever… a dance tribute to the late Michael Jackson by Tobias Ellehammer.Tobias Ellehammer, a young dancer/ choreographer from Copenhagen, Denmark, first burst onto the dancing scene when his dance video to Janet Jackson’s song “BurnItUp” went viral on YouTube. Now Ellehammer is taking the world by storm with his dance tributes and fantastic moves.In the dance tribute video, Ellehammer recreated the classic Michael Jackson hit song, “Black and White” with the same message as the King of Pop but with a twist. As we all know, Jackson’s “Black or White” song and the video speaks about equality for all, so Ellehammer decided to honor his message and Jackson with a dance routine that captivates the message in the song perfectly.Tobias Ellehammer took his talents to blend with other dancers from other countries to make an unforgettable statement that is heavily needed within today’s society. See for yourself how amazing this routine is. The King of Pop would be proud.Tobias Ellehammer: Black or White
