Norwalk students, parents defend John Glenn Wellneing Center

Former student board member Joseph Trevizu express his support for the Wellbeing Center at John Glenn High School during the NLMUSD board of education meeting on Monday. (Photo by Vincent Medina)

NORWALK — Damien Berry, 10th grade student at Norwalk High School, explained why he supports the Wellbeing Center at John Glenn High School to the Norwalk La Mirada Unified School District board of education during their meeting on Monday.

“As a member of the trans community, I know that it's very important that kids have somewhere they can go, especially if they don't feel like they can’t talk to their friends or family at home. This center will offer a lot of different services at school including sexual health and self-harm prevention,” Berry said. “For kids like me, self-harm is something that is thought about very often because we do not take into the status quo or we appear to be different than our fellow students. Please consider putting more centers like this and other schools in our district.”

Berry’s friends and family listened and applauded him in support after he was finished.

The Wellbeing Center at John Glenn and Southeast Academy High School has been the target of scrutiny from MassResistance, an organization that has been labeled a hate group by the Southern Poverty Law Center. However, the group is a self-described pro family group.

The board of education addressed concerns from MassResistance in June but members of the organization continued to express unfounded claims that have been discredited multiple times by the school board.

The field director, Arthur Schaper, tried to dismiss a survey released by the district to John Glenn High School parents, students and staff to get their feelings towards the Wellbeing Center, and if they felt the services were necessary. The survey was available to parents from Sep. 1-6.

“The statistics on [the survey results], what a ridiculously low sample size, and we have reports from parents that they were not allowed to see the survey, which is their right,” Schaper said. “I think it's really shallow that the school district pushed this survey and tried to do it on the Labor Day weekend, as if you could get a sample to try to lie to the public that the vast majority of people in the community wanted that student Wellbeing Center.”

Jessica Medrano, assistant superintendent of educational services (secondary) and Jennifer Padilla, principal at John Glenn High School and Southeast Academy High School, explained that approximately 103 (12%) of parents, 57 (36%) of staff and 279 (28%) of students responded to the district survey, according to the data.

The overwhelming majority of those who responded to the survey feel the services at the wellbeing center including mental health and wellness support, substance abuse, education and prevention, physical health and wellness resources and sexual health education and resources are either important or extremely important.

Students and parents from NLMUSD also arrived in person to express their support for the Wellbeing Center, including former student board member Joseph Trevizu.

“This is terrible to hear our students are scared to leave the high school because people are approaching them outside forcing information on them,” Trevizu said.  “These people don't belong to our community. I would tell him to take the kids out of our schools if they had any.”

Superintendent John Lopez expressed that as long as the community is in favor of the Wellbeing Center it will continue to operate at John Glenn High School.