New Rudyard Area Schools Wellness Center opens doors

The Rudyard Area Schools Wellness Center is now open, offering health services to Rudyard students who are between 10 and 21 years old.

The center was opened after the Eastern Upper Peninsula Intermediate School District received a five-year, $500,000 grant from the Child and Adolescent Health Program, which is part of the Michigan Department of Community Health and Education. The School Wellness Center is staffed by Karen Perkins and Wendy Young, who will offer limited clinical and mental health services to students. Dr. Joseph Garlinghouse will be off site and serves as the medical director of the center while Lisa Jo Gagliardi, who wrote the grant, will serve as the project director.

The School Wellness Center will be open five days a week, during school hours, with optional after hours programming. At this time, there will be no cost to students for services in the School Wellness Center. Additional programming such as after school programs may or may not charge a small fee.

Some of the many nurse services offered include monitoring weight and nutrition, blood pressure screening, attention to mild to moderate injuries or illnesses, nebulizer treatments for asthmatics, and case management for chronically ill students.
For mental health, counseling will be offered through individual and group sessions focusing on anger management, depression, anxiety, and more.

The staff will also be offering health education sessions to students and professional development opportunities to school staff, creating a safe and healthy environment.

Writer: Sam Eggleston
Source: Eastern Upper Peninsula Intermediate School District