Protect Young Eyes at This Week’s Seventh Grade Youth Conference
By Garrett Christensen on Wednesday, September 14th, 2022 in Northeastern Oregon News Northeastern Oregon Top Stories
LA GRANDE – How parents and educators keep youth on the straight and narrow is constantly evolving, with methods and missions ranging from subtle to harsh. Union County school districts are taking a more transparent and fun approach to youth safety and development with the Protect Young Eyes Seventh Grade Youth Conference.
Protect Young Eyes is a collaborative effort between the Union County Safe Communities Coalition, the Union County District Attorney’s office, the District Attorney Victim Assistance Program, the Center for Human Development and multiple other partners. The conference marks the return of annual youth education and safety projects by the Union County Safe Communities Coalition after postponement due to Covid. This renewed effort came following reports of increased, and problematic, online habits among the counties junior high and high school students, which didn’t go unnoticed by District Attorney Kelsie McDaniel, who stated:
“I was seeing a lot of reports of kids in high school making poor choices online, sexting, bullying, etc. We decided that we wanted to help kids learn about how to be safe online for themselves and to each other. We knew we weren’t going to get kids off the internet, but we wanted them to have the tools to know how to avoid dangerous situations. I brought this idea to the Safe Communities Coalition and a sub-committee was formed.”
What the committee came up with was the goal of bringing all school districts in the county together in the effort to stop dangerous online and social media usage and the behaviors that can result from it. The youth conference will involve every seventh-grade class in union county meeting on the EOU campus for a series of interactive and informative breakout sessions. Opening the conference are StuntMasters Inc who will help set the tone of healthy habits through positive influence.
For context, StuntMasters are a BMX and stunt team based out of Phoenix Arizona who, in their own words, “use the power of action sports and action words to make for purposeful fun.” Traveling worldwide, their performances serve to inspire youth and encourage a creative mindset. As stated by District Attorney Office Manager Valerie Schlichting:
“Education and knowledge are powerful tools, but to reach students we really wanted to have an entertainment factor this year as well, something that will hopefully leave a lasting impression on students to be the best people that they can be.”
At the conference, StuntMasters will perform various BMX stunts, jumps and tricks but also speak directly to the seventh graders “about drugs, responsibility and teamwork,” according to director John Parker.
The first session following StuntMasters will see Dane Jensen of the Union County Sheriff’s Office and Katie Greathouse of the Mt. Emily Safe Center discuss healthy and unhealthy relationships. This discussion will cover factors such as warning signs, different types of abuse, texting habits along with violence in teen dating.
Next, Jessica Frasier from the La Grande Middle school will host a session called “Owning Up.” Information will focus on empowering youth to confront issues such as cruelty, bullying and injustice. In addition, the session will, as stated by Schlichting, “teach young people to understand their individual development in relation to group behavior, the influence of social media on their conflicts, and the dynamics that lead to discrimination and bigotry.”
The final session will be led by Doug Crawford of the Protect Young Eyes project and will discuss concepts such as the desire among youth to achieve renown and significance along with how technology influences this drive. Discussion points, according to Schlichting, will include digital footprints, pornography, bullying, sexting, privacy, mental health and addiction along with cyber bullying.
Though covering heavy subjects, it should be noted that content is not meant to demonize technology and youth interests, nor berate kids for exploring potentially unhealthy habits. The idea is to teach kids about what they’re interacting with, the potential danger, what kind of effects their decisions could have on themselves and others along with providing them with healthy solutions and alternatives. As stated by McDaniel:
“I am hoping kids think twice about what they do online and how they treat each other. Hopefully this conference gives them some perspective as well as the skills they can use to make good choices.”
The conference is scheduled for Thursday September 15 at 9:00 a.m. StuntMasters will open at 9:15 a.m. and the conference will end at approximately 2:00 p.m. Color-coded name tags will be provided corresponding to different locations for each breakout session.
A separate presentation for parents and guardians will be held tonight at 5:30 p.m. in the La Grande High School Auditorium. For more information, see our previous article at Protect Young Eyes Presentation for Union County Parents – Elkhorn Media Group
More information on StuntMasters can be found at: About Us (stuntmasters.net)
