Page 12 | Spring 2022
was also on board and so was the Dean , Dr . Cranston . Their responses were like , ' Why haven ’ t we done this already ?'"
With Nathalie ' s guidance and support , the two were able to create a comprehensive Mental Health Attendance Policy Proposal , which Kiah says , " goes beyond the initial idea , but where we create professional development and opportunities for in-school mental health days for kids who don ’ t feel safe at home . We would also collect data to determine the schools that have the most mental health needs — just ensuring they are getting what they need ." Kiah hopes this policy would also create conversations around mental health in schools and at home .
As someone who has struggled with mental health since she was young , Kiah believes public conversations around mental health are important . Mental health was never really talked about at school . When that happens , it feels like you are othered . In high school , I realized how many of my friends struggle with the exact same thing ." Kiah sees that conversations are beginning to happen , but slowly . She has presented her idea to a school division and to Sask LEADS and continues to make plans in the hopes of creating change .
A second vision Kiah is passionate about is creating more representation in the education system . " I believe there needs to be more BIPOC / LGBTQ2SIA + leaders and administrators , but in order to get there we need to create an environment in which they feel empowered to do so . We need to create an environment in which our marginalized students feel empowered every single day ," she says .
Creating environments of empowerment is all about " representation ," Kiah says , " so students see themselves in positions of power , leadership and authority . But even on a smaller scale , see themselves in literature and daily practices . I want to make sure that as a system , every student is perceived as valued . Having many BIPOC / LGBTQ + people in leadership will let students know they can aspire to be in leadership in any field ."
This vision for representation , too , comes out of Kiah ' s lived experiences . Kiah ' s father immigrated to Canada from Jamaica with his family at the age of 4 . Her mother ' s family immigrated to Canada from the Ukraine in the 1900s . As a biracial student in a predominately
White school community , Kiah encountered discrimination , racism , and microagressions from her peers and some teachers . Recalling an English class that was reading To Kill a Mockingbird , which repeatedly used an offensive racial slur , Kiah says ,
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