This year, we are pleased to continue our partnership with Caring Canines, a local nonprofit organization that specializes in animal-assisted therapy. Founded to support students in educational settings, Caring Canines brings proven benefits to our school community. Research demonstrates that interacting with therapy animals can help students manage stress and emotions, promote calmness, enhance perceptions of social support, and decrease anxiety. Additionally, animal-assisted interactions can alleviate depression and improve overall mental well-being.

Beyond emotional support, working with therapy animals has a positive impact on academic performance, social skills, physical well-being, and cognitive development. Engaging with pets also cultivates essential life skills, such as compassion, empathy, and responsible behavior. By recognizing an animal’s feelings and boundaries, students learn to respect both their own and others’ emotions, gaining valuable insights into healthy relationships.

We are delighted to welcome back one of Caring Canines’ trained volunteers and Mysti, a gentle Goldendoodle, who will be visiting our campus on Wednesdays from 11:50 a.m. to 12:50 p.m. Select middle school students, with parental consent, have been carefully selected to participate in this program. Next semester, we plan to explore additional ways to extend the positive impact of Caring Canines to our students.

Advisory Lessons, College Week, and Crew Activities

In this month’s advisory lessons, students will focus on topics such as healthy friendships, self-advocacy, growth mindset, and empathy. As part of College Week activities, students have created college pennants and written letters to high school seniors. Meanwhile, our Crew activities this month include door decorating and preparation for our first assembly of the year. Be sure to ask your student about the upcoming event on October 30th!