By James Yang | Staff Writer

   Mindfulness exercises. Video games. Virtual museum tours. 

   This is the first year that Gabrielino High School has had a Wellness Center and Chris Saporito, former school counselor, is its coordinator. 

   The Wellness Center was first brought up as an idea by a group of students and staff who visited a wellness center at another school. They saw how it operated and thought that Gabrielino students would benefit from an outlet for stress and anxiety.

   The aim was to make a place for students to come and unwind. On campus, the Wellness Center will give students an opportunity and an environment to sit back and relax.

   With the campus being closed due to COVID-19, the Wellness Center is only accessible via a website right now. The website provides a wide variety of video games to play in order to help people get away from anything that is stressing them out. There are videos of animals on display, too, and there are video lessons on how to meditate and just be free from stress. There are also museum tours to transport students to new places.

   Currently, students are not the only ones dealing with stress. Teachers are also experiencing stress as they convert to online learning.

   ”My hope is that we will also be able to create a space for teachers to come and get the same opportunity for a break,” stated Saporito. “Obviously, this would be in a separate space [on campus] from the students.” 

   When school does reopen and students are allowed back on campus, the Wellness Center is meant to be a safe space for students. 

   “Basically, it is meant to be a drop-in where students can come throughout the day whenever they need to,” Saporito explained. “There will be time limits of course, so students will be getting back to class after a few minutes in the center.” 

   Sometimes, students are struggling in class or feeling anxious and they just need a place to go where they can cool off. With the tools it provides, the Gabrielino Wellness Center offers just that.