COLORADO SPRINGS — The three programs—Team Strong, Becoming Your Personal Best, and Grit—work together to help students both in school and in their communities cope with life struggles.
Tanner Merrifield is a junior at Doherty High School who says he struggled during the pandemic when he couldn't be in class in person.
"Just the way everything was shut down, it immediately felt like, oh, every communication was almost closed off. So just like acknowledging, I guess with one another is what made it hard," he tells News5.
Tanner says he felt the need to be perfect.
But he's better able to handle stress when things don't go as expected now, thanks to his teachers who have received special training.
Angelo Sapienza is the band teacher at Doherty High School. He tells me how he used the Team Strong program with band members to help them cope after not placing as they wanted in a band competition.
"We had gotten so far, and we were about ready to make history, and we missed the mark by an inescapably frustrating small amount. I remember bringing the band together and saying, this does not define you. And yes, it stings. But I'm so proud of the work that you've done," he said.
Any school in the state can participate in Team STRONG. Schools can reach out to education@usopm.org for more information.
Click to learn more about Becoming Your Personal Best
Click here to learn more about the GRIT program
Watch the full story above.
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