Good decision making programs work at Shepherd Hill

By Steev Riccardo

Dudley - Making good decisions is really important when you are a high school student. It is easy to get turned in the wrong direction and make a bad decision. One local school is working very hard to help make sure that doesn’t happen.

Shepherd Hill Regional High School has made a huge effort towards encouraging students to make good decisions by bringing in guest speakers and using techniques such as motivational videos to help impact the students and send them in the right direction.

At last week’s school committee meeting, High School Principal Mary Pierangeli described three such programs the school has used to aid in its efforts to help students make good choices.

On November 18 tenth grade students attended the school’s annual Students Against Destructive Decisions (SADD) program, a presentation of the “Yellow Dress” by Deana’s Educational Theater. The one-woman play is based on the story of a victim of dating violence. It helped students understand the warning signs of abuse and also offered suggestions on coping with unhealthy situations. SADD advisors Jacquelin Govoni and Graces Rodriquez organized the event. The presentation is one aspect of the school’s bullying and violence prevention initiatives.

Speaker Sarah Panzau gave two moving presentations to the student body on November 29. Her heavy message included underage drinking, drunk driving, respecting parents, peer pressure, the meaning of “real friends,” determination, perseverance and rising above disabilities. Panzau was brought to the school to speak by Nutrition and Wellness Instructor Ashley Gustafson.

On December 7 all the students viewed a video entitled “the last text” during advisories. State Representative Peter Durant’s office provided a link to the Dudley-Charlton School Committee, suggesting that all students view the video. It was discussed in each of the advisories and students were asked to sign a “responsible driver” pledge that included a gold ribbon to wear during the day and then later pin to their car visors as a reminder of their pledge.

All of these presentations were well received by the students, said Ms.Pierangeli, and “Shepherd Hill will continue to schedule similar educational opportunities in an effort to educate our students on appropriate decision-making.”

Contact This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it