Did you know that suicide is the second highest cause of death in young adults? Teens all over the world are struggling with mental health issues, and might not know that they have resources to help them. Active Minds is a new club at Franklin High School (FHS) that wants to be that support for students to be comfortable, and open the conversation around mental health. 

Active Minds became a club in 2022, because of Seniors who wanted to destigmatize mental health and create an open and honest place to talk about these issues. Members of the club want students in their school and community to know that they have a safe place to go to, and talk about issues surrounding mental health. 

Bulletin boards will soon fill the halls with resources and other news surrounding mental health. Active Minds wants FHS students to recognize all of the support they have. The board members are also planning on having guest speakers appear in their club meetings. It could be a teacher, student, athlete, or anyone who is willing to share their thoughts or experiences with mental health. Active Minds also took a trip to Gillette Stadium to attend the KyleCares Mental Health Conference. This conference’s purpose was to open the conversation about mental health to schools all over Massachusetts through sharing Kyle’s story. 

Everybody and anybody are welcome to join Active Minds. Caroline Harmon, president of the Active Minds chapter at FHS says, “We want representatives from every single group of students and people in FHS. Boys, girls, athletes, musicians, and teachers are encouraged to join. We want to be able to have conversations that might be difficult for some people to have.” 

This club meets after school every other Wednesday in room 122. The meetings are from 2:15 to about 3:00 and activities and discussions vary every meeting. If you have any questions or would like to know more about Active Minds, stop by after school for our meetings!