Building Better Schools: A Wellness Perspective from California Students
For California high school students, wellness means more than physical health—it’s about managing stress, building relationships, and maintaining mental well-being. In eight interviews with students from Northern and Southern California, one idea came up repeatedly: our mental health and overall wellness are deeply intertwined.
To gain deeper insight, we took the time to sit down with eight high school students and ask them directly:
How do you think your school supports student mental health and overall well-being?
What resources or initiatives at your school have had the biggest impact on your emotional or physical wellness?
Can you describe how your school balances academics and student wellness? Do you think it’s effective?
What changes would you suggest to improve mental health support in schools?
How do you personally manage stress or maintain your well-being during the school year?
How do peer relationships at your school impact your sense of well-being?
What role do teachers and staff play in supporting student wellness at your school?
How does your school address issues like bullying, social pressure, or burnout among students?
What’s one wellness initiative you wish your school would implement?
If you could design a program or space at your school dedicated to wellness, what would it look like?
Maleah from Southern California explained, “My school provides a health and wellness center to always be there for anyone who needs someone to talk to, or just a safe space.” Similarly, Shanzay from Northern California shared, “Having a comfortable space to go helps my mental health and wellness by letting me decompress during a busy school.” These reflections highlight that wellness is about the mental health aspect, where wellness is also becoming acknowledged more in education.
Things Schools Do Well for Student Wellness
Schools in California do several things very well around student wellness. Students complimented: counseling, community development, and physical wellness initiatives across the interviews as those strengths.
Data indicated that: counseling and mental health support, and community-building activities, are tied for the strongest areas where schools are performing well according to the amount of times students mentioned those categories.
Key Findings: Counseling and mental health support, and community-building activities, are viewed as schools’ strongest areas of wellness support.
Student voices highlighted these themes:
Myah from Southern California described how her school creates a sense of safety, sharing: “I believe that my school supports my overall well-being by having teachers, aids, and counselors to talk to to make sure that they are safe and sound at home and at school.”
Beck appreciated his school’s accessibility to professional support, stating, “Having close relationships and general accessibility to almost any member of the professional community is extremely helpful.”
Salma emphasized the importance of community-building events, saying, “My school does rallies and after school events to ensure that students are working for the future but enjoying the high school years as well.”
Athletics and physical activity were also praised:
Beck, a senior from Southern California, said, “Having an accessible gym on campus supports my mental health and my direct physical well-being.”
Armaan, from Northern California, pointed to the availability of time for relaxation and physical activity, sharing, “I manage stress by doing things I love like relaxing with my family, going to the gym and playing sports like basketball.”
Regional Observations
Southern California schools, such as those attended by Maleah, Alicia, Myah and Beck, place a strong emphasis on creating welcoming and supportive environments. Meanwhile, Northern California schools, like those of Salma, Shanzay, Ali and Armaan, emphasize the prioritization of extracurricular opportunities and spaces for decompression.
Things Schools Can Improve for Student Wellness:
The data above spotlights areas in which schools shine; however, students overwhelmingly cited academic load as one of the major hindering factors for wellness. Indeed, too many students reported that an intensive quantity of assignments coupled with no downtime negatively affects them.
Key Findings: Academic workload emerged as the top concern, with students advocating for reforms to reduce stress and prioritize mental health.
Student quotes illustrate this challenge:
Alicia a student from Southern California suggested a restorative initiative, saying, “I would suggest a nap time/rest period in between class periods to reset because I’m usually up late working on homework.”
Armaan from Northern California agreed that workload takes away from rest time, stating, “I would suggest that schools have no homework weeks to give students time to spend with family and friends because the workload does not allow for that during a homework filled week.”
Students also advocated for broader wellness initiatives:
Ali a Northern student emphasized the importance of fun, suggesting, “I wish my school would have more mental health days where students can take a break from academics and focus on self-care maybe with activities like yoga meditation or creative workshops.”
Beck from Southern California, envisioned a structured physical wellness program, stating, “I would plan on making a structured lifting team with coaches and professional community involvement.”
When addressing broader wellness concerns, some students felt their schools fell short due to a big academic workload:
Alicia noted, “I would recommend lessening the academic workload in order to leave space for emotional well being.
Regional Observations
Both Northern and Southern California students, ranging in age from 15–18 (grades 10–12), articulated the need for academic reform. Southern California students favored restorative practices that included extended breaks or nap periods, while Northern California students suggested less homework or structured periods of downtime, as seen with Ali and Armaan.
Conclusion
These students' voices expressed a demand for a balance between academic hard work and emotional well-being breaks. Though schools do quite well in areas such as counseling and community building, the overwhelming call for reform in academics indicates there is work yet to be done.
By listening to student perspectives and implementing creative solutions, California schools can create even more environments in which wellness is not an afterthought but a cornerstone of education. Supporting both mental and physical well-being ensures that students not only succeed academically but thrive as whole individuals.
By: Husna Balaven