A View From Above on Things That Make The World Go 'Round
James Donaldson on Mental Health – Why is Black youth suicide on the rise?
Posted on by
READ LATER - DOWNLOAD THIS POST AS PDF >> CLICK HERE <<
UNC School of Education faculty are looking at factors inside schools that may affect students’ mental health.
Constance Lindsay is researching the connection between school discipline and the increasing rates of Black youth suicide.
Constance Lindsay, assistant professor at the UNC School of Education, is conducting research alongside Carolina professors to learn about increasing suicide rates among Black youth over the past several years.
Broadly, her work focuses on evaluating policies and practices to close racial achievement gaps in education. Part of this research is looking at what’s happening inside schools, by studying teachers, leaders and educators.
Another part of Lindsay’s work is seeing what then happens outside of schools — how factors inside schools may affect student behavior and outcomes beyond the school building.
“As we know, these rates are going up, so we are trying to investigate why,” said Lindsay. “We want to make this connection explicit between receiving discipline in schools and students’ later mental health outcomes.”
This research is an interdepartmental collaboration within the school, with Lindsay and associate professors Marissa Marraccini and Dana Griffin. They are looking at Black youth, inside and outside of school, to see what contributes to their mental health outcomes.
Lindsay first learned of Marraccini and Griffin’s work from the school’s lightning symposium, a recurring event where professors give a five-minute overview of their work. From there, the three came together to think how they could apply their individual expertise and findings to solve this issue. They started writing a research paper during the COVID-19 pandemic, which was published a year later in School Psychology Review and garnered attention.
In that publication, they focused on providing school-based professionals, from counselors to teachers, to with existing resources to develop holistic approaches to mental health care for younger Black males, relating to trauma, justice and equity. But this work raised new questions for their research.
“Being at a place like Carolina where I can collaborate with other schools and professors made me want to dig deeper,” said Lindsay.
Lindsay and her colleagues hoped to receive funding to analyze the topic more in depth to help North Carolina children.
In 2023, the Student Experience Research Network gave the group a grant to collect more data on the topic. The trio will use the funding to start making the connection between disparities in discipline and later mental health outcomes for Black students.
The Walton Family Foundation also awarded the trio a grant to extend their data collection for several more years. They recently submitted a paper where they conducted a national review of all state education policies relating to Black youth to provide more quantitative analysis.
#James Donaldson notes: Welcome to the “next chapter” of my life… being a voice and an advocate for #mentalhealthawarenessandsuicideprevention, especially pertaining to our younger generation of students and student-athletes. Getting men to speak up and reach out for help and assistance is one of my passions. Us men need to not suffer in silence or drown our sorrows in alcohol, hang out at bars and strip joints, or get involved with drug use. Having gone through a recent bout of #depression and #suicidalthoughts myself, I realize now, that I can make a huge difference in the lives of so many by sharing my story, and by sharing various resources I come across as I work in this space.#http://bit.ly/JamesMentalHealthArticle Find out more about the work I do on my 501c3 non-profit foundation website www.yourgiftoflife.org Order your copy of James Donaldson’s latest book, #CelebratingYourGiftofLife: From The Verge of Suicide to a Life of Purpose and Joy
Having already done interviews with school-based professionals, like counselors and administrators, the group plans to interview parents. They have co-designed sessions, bringing their research together into action for school-based professionals and parents to support the mental health needs of Black youth and work to prevent suicide.
The group’s research is already being integrated into the School of Education’s school counseling and school psychology programs, which are training school professionals to provide mental health resources and care to K-12 students.
“We want to offer solutions,” said Lindsay. “Our research has a holistic way of thinking about mental health that is useful for interacting with youth, so there is a lot of potential moving forward.”
Lindsay hopes in the future the group can show the connection between early discipline experiences and later mental health outcomes to help school-based educators, professionals and administrators to truly understand the implications of in-school behaviors.
James Donaldson is a Washington State University graduate (’79). After an outstanding basketball career with WSU, he went on to play professional basketball in the NBA with the Seattle Supersonics, San Diego/L.A. Clippers, Dallas Mavericks, New York Knicks, and Utah Jazz. He also played for several teams in the European Leagues in Spain, Italy, and Greece, and he toured with The Harlem Globetrotters to wrap up his career. James was an NBA All-Star in 1988 while playing center for the Dallas Mavericks. In 2006, James was inducted into the Pac-10 Sports Hall of Fame and also the Washington State University Athletic Hall of Fame. In 2010, James was elected as a board member for the NBA Retired Players Association.
James frequently conducts speaking engagements (motivational, inspirational, educational) for organizations, schools, and youth groups.
In 2010, James was the recipient of the NBA Legends of Basketball ABC Award, awarded for outstanding contributions in Athletics–Business–Community.
He believes in being a role model for success and professionalism to the scores of young people to whom he devotes so much of his time. He currently serves on several boards and committees and is a member of many organizations.
James believes in developing relationships that create a “Win-Win” environment for everyone involved, and in being the best he can be!
For more information about James Donaldson or to request he speak at your event, contact him at:
James Donaldson is the author of “Standing Above The Crowd” and “Celebrating Your Gift of Life” and founder of the Your Gift of Life Foundation which focuses on mental health awareness and suicide prevention, especially pertaining to our school aged children and men.
If you’re interested in having James come and speak to your group of young adults, business entrepreneurs, aspiring political and community leaders, and athletic teams, please contact him at [email protected] and or leave a personal message for him at 1-800-745-3161. Keep up with him and read about how he is reaching out and making a difference in the lives of so many around the world at www.yourgiftoflife.org
Related
READ LATER - DOWNLOAD THIS POST AS PDF >> CLICK HERE <<
