More opportunities are being provided for students in the School District of Lee County to interact with their peers through the Sandy Hook Promise, Peer to Peer Mentoring and the LISTEN initiative.

The Lee County School Board heard a presentation this week that went into detail, with the first highlighting the Sandy Hook Promise, kicking off this month with school wide assemblies at all secondary schools.

Student Services Executive Director Dr. Jessica Duncan said the week of Sept. 18-22 includes the National Start with Hello Week, which includes SAVE Promise clubs gearing up for a week of activities.

Student Services Threat Assessments Coordinator Kimberley Molhem said one school is handing out name tags with the challenge of going out and saying hello to three students, or peers that they do not know. The following day they will debrief as to how the activity went.

Duncan said there will also be a Youth Leadership Safety Summit. The Sandy Hook Promise will facilitate two days where secondary school students will learn from each other on ways they are building inclusive communities in their schools.

“It’s a great opportunity for each of our club members, five students with a club advisor, to come for a full day,” Molhem said, adding that an advisor from Sandy Hook will also be in attendance. “It will showcase what they are doing in their schools.”

Some of that work began last year at schools. Riverdale High School wrote positive comments on sticky notes and put them on every locker to provide a positive start to the day for students.

Another program highlighted was the Peer-to-Peer Mentoring Program.

This is part of an award received by the Foundation for Lee County Public Schools, Duncan said.

Two high schools have been selected, Island Coast High School and Lehigh Senior High School, with the hopes of having 15 to 20 mentors per site.

They are in the process of completing all of the paperwork and notifying parents whose child wants to participate so parents can either opt them in or out.

“We will train mentors, so they have the appropriate listening skills,” Duncan said, adding that they hope to establish a program that they can move onto other sites.

As a component of that they had the LISTEN Initiative with four participating high schools, Gateway, Island Coast, Dunbar and Lehigh Senior. Students will watch the screening of the movie “Listen,” and have follow-up interactive discussions and active listener training with Film Director Erahm Christopher.

“This is about student achievement in a different way. Really, there is a whole aspect to the support and health of a child. This is an opportunity for them to grow and use peer-to-peer mentoring to work to create environments,” Superintendent Dr. Christopher Bernier said.

Board member Jada Langford-Fleming was ecstatic about the presentation and the opportunities for students.

“I kept thinking yes, yes, yes. These are the types of activities that students are going to go home and have conversations with their parents,” she said.