Student: “I think I’m addicted to sadness”

When I landed in Bettendorf, Iowa, it was my first time visiting the state. But while Iowa falls below the radar of most, I was excited. Besides being corn Mecca and hosting the first presidential contest, Iowa is also home to a robust and growing student voice movement.

Over the course of the day in Bettendorf we hosted six rounds of Student Voice Sessions. The goal of Student Voice Sessions is simple: to create space for students to think critically about school. Often, this is the first time students are given such an opportunity.

The conversations are always slow at first. Students aren’t used to thinking this way because they’ve never been expected to. But over the course of the discussion you can see consciousness start rising and their perspectives yield some profound observations.

There were two conversations throughout the day that had my mind racing during my drive to Webster City after the day was over. The first took place early in the morning at Bettendorf Middle School.

I was facilitating a Student Voice Session with five girls. Four of the girls were eager to share and reflect on their experiences in school but one girl sat with her head down most of the conversation. The discussion went from school lunch, to class choice, to school governance, to safety and well-being. All the while one voice at the table stayed silent.

Eventually I asked someone to take over for me facilitating and pulled the girl outside to speak with her one on one.

I said, “You’ve been quiet.”

She looked at me, “I’ve had nothing to say.”

“Have you ever felt unsafe at school?”

“I make people feel unsafe at school.”

I asked, “Why?”

“I’m the bully”

I pushed, “Why?”

“I have to be; otherwise people will walk all over me.”

The second moment came towards the end of the day. The discussion was at the high school and contained 6 students total. Two of them were from entirely different walks of life.

One was a soft spoken Asian student who spoke openly about mostly keeping to himself and spending a lot of time studying. Throughout the conversation he rarely spoke, but when he did he spoke in depth.

The other was an African-American student who spoke once during conversation. He made faces and mannerism that sent communicated he didn’t want to be in the room or even at school.

The conversation turned to safety and well-being again and I asked the question, “How does school affect your mental health?”

The Asian student said, “I think I’m addicted to sadness.”

He was so quiet I thought I misheard him. But I wasn’t the only one interested in what he said. The African-American student, who up to this point had not said a single word suddenly leaned in and looked this kid in the eye, “What? What did you just say?”

The other student repeated, “I am addicted to sadness.”

And the African-American student agreed, “huh…I think I am too.”

The Asian student went on to describe how the pressures to succeed in school and college expectations led him to the conclusion that he is addicted to sadness, an addiction that has been a barrier in his life. These two students began to connect on a level that I don’t think either of them would have expected in their wildest dreams.

What can we do in school to help these students?

Safety and Well-being is not in the Student Bill of Rights by accident. We know that it is prerequisite to learning. We must confront this barrier if we have any hope at reaching our students with the most promise.

Bettendorf is an interesting place. The school historically maintains a reputation as the white, wealthy school but like many schools around the country their demographics are changing and the schools are struggling to adjust.

During our stop, we helped raise the consciousness of Bettendorf about the role they can play in improving education. Two weeks from now I’ll be in South Carolina with Merrit Jones to raise the consciousness of students there.

Be on the look-out for more stories from Iowa students as part of our Students of America campaign on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. And follow us on Snapchat and Periscope to get a look at each tour stop.

Learn more about Student Voice at stuvoice.org and the Student Bill of Rights at sturights.org.

The movement is live. #stuvoice