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Montgomery County Public Schools (MCPS)
Whitman HS Suicide
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Anonymous
| I took 2 AP classes senior year at Whitman. They were difficult, taking two was challenging. I am a parent now. Teens, and what they can handle, hasn't changed that much. IMO. Maybe what they are expected to handle, due to competition, has changed but that doesn't make taking a full load of APs the right approach. |
Anonymous
|
[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]My daughter is a freshman at whitman and tells me things very similar to the person at 22:31. School starts so early, they have so much work, psat nonsense and pressure start freshman year. Ive already told mine if she feels its too much she can step back and we will find alternatives for her. I don’t understand why this pressure is put on teenagers and can’t imagine how the stress is affecting their growth and development. I understand Jojo had other challenges beyond high school but in general Whitman does not seem a healthy place for young people. [/quote]
You are exactly right. Keep supporting her, you are one of the few adults who is getting it right. Whitman is not for everyone, it wasn't for me. My freshmen year i was hospitalized for 4 months after attending the school and being driven toward suicide [/quote] I had kids at 2 progressive low pressure private schools and at Whitman and saw kids who thrived at each and had trouble at each. The private school had kids with anxiety issues, eating disorders, bullies and bullying victims, etc. If anything i saw more of that at the private schools than at Whitman. I am really not sure this is an institutional issue, and not even sure it's primarily a parent issue (although no doubt that's a factor). Are kids committing suicide because of academic pressure or because of other issues. How much is social media, pressures on appearance, bullying, etc. |
Anonymous
|
I would be curious to hear what the former Whitman students who struggled with mental illness while there have to say about what they think the school could have done differently.
With respect to the pressures and stress students face there and at any other similar school, for some families parents and their expectations are a major part of the problem, but in general I think most of the stress comes from the current college application landscape and the hoops students have to jump through if they want to show they are taking the most rigorous classes. A few years ago there were multiple showings of the movie "Race to Nowhere" at Whitman, and a big movement among parents there to raise awareness about the risks of the AP-obsessed culture. Might be time for another round of screenings. Note that I don't think school pressures or Whitman are in any way to blame for JoJo's suicide. I'd just like to see more kids realize that they don't need to get into elite colleges in order to be happy and successful in life, and I'd like them to be able to enjoy high school more and have a better balance between academics and the rest of their lives. |
Anonymous
|
Please sign this petition for Jojo! It's for better mental health resources everywhere!
https://www.change.org/p/increase-resources-for-mental-health-support-for-students-in-all-schools-forjojo |
Anonymous
The whitman kids have been making more of a differnece than the adults have been. |
Anonymous
| Perhaps one of the challenges that teens face today in MCPS schools is that there can be such a huge jump between Honors courses and AP courses. When honors classes are not challenging, students feel pressure to take more AP classes. Of course, there is also the pressure to get into college... |
Anonymous
I attended there and attempted suicide while there. I was told not to tell people why I was gone, they made me feel ashamed. They explained it away, saying that they didn’t want copycats. I felt shit off. They forced me to go ontohome and hospital and wouldn’t let me come back to the school. One of the counselors would often force me to leave the counseling office, even though I had a pass that let me be there whenever I wanted because she said other people needdd the space. They need to actually support their students and not just care once they’re dead. Get rid of the incompetent counselors and shitty 504 team. Bring in therapists. Make it easier for kids to get accommodations, we had to go through so much paperwork that it took 2 months to even get the first 504 meeting. I left before I even got one. Before anyone says it’s changed- this was last year. |
Anonymous
| Sorry for your experience, and I know that's not enough. Wouldn't it be nice if therapists in this area would volunteer their time in our own schools to help within the community? That would be one way of starting to address the problem, this school, and I'm sure many others, just want to chase the problem away. One less thing to deal with I guess. So sad. |
Anonymous
| I have a child in Poolesville’s Global program. I think it should be a model for some of the more Competitive /affluent HS like Whitman. I’m sure the parents would fund it. Get the kids away one day a month and have them muck in a creek or something. Sad that the only way kids do this now is if they are part of a program- but I think it would help against depression. |
Anonymous
|
[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]I would be curious to hear what the former Whitman students who struggled with mental illness while there have to say about what they think the school could have done differently.
With respect to the pressures and stress students face there and at any other similar school, for some families parents and their expectations are a major part of the problem, but in general I think most of the stress comes from the current college application landscape and the hoops students have to jump through if they want to show they are taking the most rigorous classes. A few years ago there were multiple showings of the movie "Race to Nowhere" at Whitman, and a big movement among parents there to raise awareness about the risks of the AP-obsessed culture. Might be time for another round of screenings. Note that I don't think school pressures or Whitman are in any way to blame for JoJo's suicide. I'd just like to see more kids realize that they don't need to get into elite colleges in order to be happy and successful in life, and I'd like them to be able to enjoy high school more and have a better balance between academics and the rest of their lives. [/quote] I attended there and attempted suicide while there. I was told not to tell people why I was gone, they made me feel ashamed. They explained it away, saying that they didn’t want copycats. I felt shit off. They forced me to go ontohome and hospital and wouldn’t let me come back to the school. One of the counselors would often force me to leave the counseling office, even though I had a pass that let me be there whenever I wanted because she said other people needdd the space. They need to actually support their students and not just care once they’re dead. Get rid of the incompetent counselors and shitty 504 team. Bring in therapists. Make it easier for kids to get accommodations, we had to go through so much paperwork that it took 2 months to even get the first 504 meeting. I left before I even got one. Before anyone says it’s changed- this was last year. [/quote] To start it would have been helpful if students there didn't brush dangerous things like known self harm under the rug. I had peers telling me to kill my self and bullying me online. I had a group of great friends but my own struggles were just too much for me to live through (I felt). I had teachers who told me my ADHD was not real and my biology teacher refused to provide me with some of the accommodations on my 504-plan. The accommodations the school provided were very helpful, like having a flash pass so I could leave class promptly if I was having a panic attack. I was taking all honors classes and getting a 4.0 yet people were shitting on me calling me stupid and comparing my honors classes (freshmen year) to their IB AND AP. I realized I was never enough, I could not make everyone there happy. If I was still at Whitman and didn't have the opportunity to transfer to an independent school I 100% would be dead right now and that's no doubt in my mind. My progress was because of solely my hard work, against the fucked up odds i was given, and the lack of support entirely. I am happy I am not dead, I survived (by the grace of god) literally. |
Anonymous
|
[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]I would be curious to hear what the former Whitman students who struggled with mental illness while there have to say about what they think the school could have done differently.
With respect to the pressures and stress students face there and at any other similar school, for some families parents and their expectations are a major part of the problem, but in general I think most of the stress comes from the current college application landscape and the hoops students have to jump through if they want to show they are taking the most rigorous classes. A few years ago there were multiple showings of the movie "Race to Nowhere" at Whitman, and a big movement among parents there to raise awareness about the risks of the AP-obsessed culture. Might be time for another round of screenings. Note that I don't think school pressures or Whitman are in any way to blame for JoJo's suicide. I'd just like to see more kids realize that they don't need to get into elite colleges in order to be happy and successful in life, and I'd like them to be able to enjoy high school more and have a better balance between academics and the rest of their lives. [/quote] I attended there and attempted suicide while there. I was told not to tell people why I was gone, they made me feel ashamed. They explained it away, saying that they didn’t want copycats. I felt shit off. They forced me to go ontohome and hospital and wouldn’t let me come back to the school. One of the counselors would often force me to leave the counseling office, even though I had a pass that let me be there whenever I wanted because she said other people needdd the space. They need to actually support their students and not just care once they’re dead. Get rid of the incompetent counselors and shitty 504 team. Bring in therapists. Make it easier for kids to get accommodations, we had to go through so much paperwork that it took 2 months to even get the first 504 meeting. I left before I even got one. Before anyone says it’s changed- this was last year. [/quote] To start it would have been helpful if students there didn't brush dangerous things like known self harm under the rug. I had peers telling me to kill my self and bullying me online. I had a group of great friends but my own struggles were just too much for me to live through (I felt). I had teachers who told me my ADHD was not real and my biology teacher refused to provide me with some of the accommodations on my 504-plan. The accommodations the school provided were very helpful, like having a flash pass so I could leave class promptly if I was having a panic attack. I was taking all honors classes and getting a 4.0 yet people were shitting on me calling me stupid and comparing my honors classes (freshmen year) to their IB AND AP. I realized I was never enough, I could not make everyone there happy. If I was still at Whitman and didn't have the opportunity to transfer to an independent school I 100% would be dead right now and that's no doubt in my mind. My progress was because of solely my hard work, against the fucked up odds i was given, and the lack of support entirely. I am happy I am not dead, I survived (by the grace of god) literally. [/quote] I attempted suicide and was hospitalized as well and the same thing happened to me that happened to the person above. The school silenced me and told me not to tell people. It killed me, and everyday I was back i anxiously kept my eyes alert and contemplated who knew and what rumors must have been made up about me |
Anonymous
| This is all just so sad. I really think we need to support us and our kids being nicer with less competition and way more information and stronger support from mental health professionals. Anyone have any other ideas what we can do to help practically? |
Anonymous
|
Tons of families are struggling.
And thinking they're the only one. 
|
Anonymous
Getting into college does not require AP classes. The AP pressure is about "which" college. |
Anonymous
And if you go to Frostburg you will completely be mocked. |