In response to the COVID-19 Pandemic, APSL will be moving to an online peer support format. Please contact us to learn more.
March 8th, 2022
California Children's Trust Acknowledges APSL
APSL is proud to announce that California Children’s Trust has listed our organization as one of the programs to “watch and learn from” in their issue brief, "Youth Supporting Youth: Expanding Peer-to-Peer Programs to Address the Growing Youth Mental Health". We are honored!
February 7, 2021
Academy of Arts, Careers, and Technology Joins APSL as an Affiliate Member School
We are honored to welcome the Academy of Arts, Careers, and Technology (AACT) to the Adolescent Peer Support League Affiliate Member Program. Located in the Washoe County School District of Reno, Nevada, AACT offers rigorous college and career prep pathways.
AACT’s designation as an approved APSL Affiliate Member School means they have met the initial requirements outlined in our peer support best practices/ body of knowledge. Upon completion of APSL peer support training, and it’s related assessments, AACT’s program team will launch its APSL student-to-student peer support program in the fall.
October 17, 2020
APSL is Moving to an Online Format
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In response to the COVID-19 Pandemic, Adolescent Peer Support League will be moving it’s peer support training services to an online format. Schools administrators interested in this new format should contact the APSL office for guidance.
October 17, 2020
MARK YOUR CALENDARS!!!
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The groundbreaking event,
“SHARING OUR VOICE: What Students Think About School Mental Health” is scheduled for Thursday October 21, 2021. The 2021 Conference will take place online, and will be packed with important content school administrators can use to inform their future school mental health programs.
Registration for the 2021 Conference opens in April.
October 16, 2018
Highlights from 2018 SHARING OUR VOICE Conference
What students think of school mental health
Over 125 school psychologists, school administrators, private foundations, and mental health government agency leaders gathered at the Silver Spring Civic Building to hear the viewpoints and opinions of students from DC, MD, and VA. What has emerged as a milestone event, APSL's, first annual conference, "SHARING OUR VOICE: What Students Think About School Mental Heath," took place on October 12, 2018, from 8:30 am to 3 pm EST. The Conference featured testimonial statements from both high school and college students, a collaborative interactive session between students and administrators, a variety of workshops, a student video montage, a school awards ceremony and catered lunch. Numerous school districts supported the event with attendance from school officials from as far as North Carolina and Michigan. APSL will host the SHARING OUR VOICE student mental heath conference every year in October. Photos from 2018 Sharing Our Voice conference.
February 23, 2018
APSL President to be a Panelist at Community Bridges Event
By Karen Roydon, APSL Team Support
Adolescent Peer Support League (APSL) President, Dawn Bunch, will be a panelist at the 2018 Career and Innovation Summit, sponsored by Community Bridges. The goal of this year’s event is to empower 4th through 12th grade girls from diverse backgrounds to think big and strive to be leaders in their own communities. The panelists will discuss their community work, and take questions from the audience during the event’s morning session. The event will take place on April 7th, 2018 at the Montgomery College Cultural Arts Center in Silver Spring, MD.
Community Bridges is a young women's leadership and empowerment organization based out of Silver Spring , MD that works with girls from diverse backgrounds to become exceptional students, to see their own potential for leadership, and to grow into healthy young women.
Community Bridges serves girls primarily from immigrant and minority families who are living at or below the poverty level in Montgomery County. Through their after-school and out-of-school programming, Community Bridges supports both girls and their families through their mentoring program, college and career programming, service opportunities, educational trips, and facilitating workshops that provide resources and support to their families. Combined, Community Bridges's programs encourage holistic growth and development so that girls have the greatest chance to reach their fullest potential.
February 20, 2018
APSL President Recieves the President's Volunteer Service Award from the White House
by Karen Roydon, APSL Team Support
APSL President, Dawn Bunch, has received the President's Volunteer Service Award, sponsored by The White House. Bunch was presented with this honor in recognition of her community work in supporting teens in crisis.
January 10, 2018
APSL Curriculum in Developing Stages
by Karen Roydon, APSL Team Support
Adolescent Peer Support League is currently refining its evidenced-based peer support program curriculum for implementation in both private and public schools for the Fall of 2018. APSL's Program components include, face to face training classes designed to train students to go on to become effective peer supporters.
APSL will pilot this program at select schools in the D.C. Metro area, and is currently in conversations with school districts in the state of Delaware and a school in Illinois.
November 01, 2017
APSL President Attends University of Maryland's Center for School Mental Health's School Mental Health Youth Leadership Day
by Karen Roydon, APSL Team Support
APSL's president, Dawn Bunch, recently attended the The University of Maryland School of Medicine Center for School Mental Health's 22nd Annual Conference on Advancing School Mental Health as a youth leader.
The conference explored several aspects school mental health, including implementation of comprehensive school mental health programs, community partnerships, and student perspectives.
October 15, 2017
Help support our movement to better teen mental health by voting for our KIND Cause!
by Karen Roydon, APSL Team Support
Adolescent Peer Support League has recently become an approved KIND Cause, a program of the KIND Foundation! KIND Causes are focused on helping and empowering communities in the U.S. and abroad. Each approved Cause is voted on by the general public, and the Cause with the most votes will be awarded $10,000 by KIND Foundation.
Substance abuse. Stress. Bullying. Feeling hopeless. Feeling alone. Social conflict. Dropping out of school. Violence. Suicide.
All of these issues plague high school students during the most formative part of their lives: adolescence. Our organization aims to implement peer support programs in high schools to address this epidemic nationwide, but we need your help. Your vote can help us achieve our goal.
If we win the contest, we will use our funds to help build out a formal adolescent peer support training program, including the development of peer support training materials. The peer support model encourages mental health by focusing on prevention and by supporting teens with positive role models.
October 13, 2017
Come Visit Our Booth at the 3rd Annual Kensington Fall Festival!
by Karen Roydon, APSL Team Support
The Adolescent Peer Support League will be at the 3rd Annual Kensington Fall Festival on Sunday, October 15, 2017 from 11 am to 4 pm. The Festival takes place in historic old town Kensington, MD and pulls the community together with street vendors, arts, crafts, and entertainment. The Festival is expected to draw thousands of families from all over the D.C. metropolitan area.
Festival goers can stop by the APSL's booth to learn more about the work Adolescent Peer Support League is doing to support teens.
September 26, 2017
Public Interest Podcast Interviews APSL
by Karen Roydon, APSL Team Support
Jordan Cooper, founder of Public Interest Podcast, engaged with the APSL Team for an interview at Albert Einstein H.S.
Public Interest Podcast is a popular online radio show, consisting of interactive and informative conversations with community activists, advocates, politicians, and others who want to have a positive impact on society. Public Interest Podcast has been instrumental in delivering various and meaningful points of view on topics of public service.
Public Interest Podcast episodes are available at PublicInterestPodcast.com.
APSL's session with Public Interest Podcast will be available on the Public Interest Podcast site in December 2017.
September 15, 2017
APSL President Recieves Recognition from County Executive
By Karen Roydon, APSL Team Support
APSL President, Dawn Bunch, just received a Certificate of Recognition and Appreciation from Montgomery County Executive, Ike Leggett.
The County Executive cited the significant contributions that Bunch's organization is making, and lauded APSL for exemplifying the "value of community service" and for being a role model to other youths and adults in our community."
Through conducting extensive research on the efficacy of peer support programs, Bunch concluded that the issue of adolescent mental health could be effectively addressed through the widespread implementation of peer support programs in the nation's high schools, which her organization aims to accomplish.
August 25, 2017
APSL President Joins Yellow Ribbon IYC
by Karen Roydon, APSL Team Support
APSL's President, Dawn Bunch, has recently joined the Yellow Ribbon Suicide Prevention Program as a part of their International Youth Council. Yellow Ribbon is an organization dedicated to suicide prevention initiatives across the country.
Yellow Ribbon's mission statement is as follows:
"The Light for Life Foundation int'l/Yellow Ribbon Suicide Prevention Program is dedicated to preventing suicide - and attempts - by making suicide prevention accessible to everyone and removing barriers to help."
As a part of Yellow Ribbon's International Youth Council, Dawn will be participating in key discussions on ways to help prevent teen suicide, and will share information about Yellow Ribbon to teens in crisis.
July 21, 2017
DC Psychological Association President Joins APSL
by Karen Roydon, APSL Team Support
D.C. Psychological Association President, Mallory Starr, has joined the Advisory Board for Adolescent Peer Support League ("APSL"). Prior to joining APSL, Mr. Starr has been engaged in social science research and program development, as well as clinical psychological work in terms of psychological evaluations, and therapeutic programs in mental health centers.
July 07, 2017
MCPS School Administrators Join APSL Advisory Board
by Karen Roydon, APSL Team Support
Montgomery County Public School administrators Deann Collins, Ed.D, and Kimberly Becraft, have recently joined the advisory board of Adolescent Peer Support League ("APSL"). In their volunteer roles, Dr. Collins and Ms. Becraft will be assisting APSL in developing best practices and guidelines for peer support programs at the high school level.
Dr. Collins is the director of the Division of Title I and Early Childhood Programs and Services for MCPS. Ms. Becraft is the International Baccalaureate coordinator for Albert Einstein High School.
June 12, 2017
APSL Selects Board Members
By Karen Roydon, APSL Team Support
Debra Cheung, M.D., and Kathryn Bryant have been selected as volunteer board members for Adolescent Peer Support League ("APSL").
Dr. Cheung, who will serve as APSL's secretary, is a board-certified otolaryngologist practicing general otolaryngology in the Mid-Atlantic Permanente Medical Group. Ms. Bryant, who will assume the role of APSL's treasurer, currently works for AmerisourceBergen, supporting the pharmaceutical industry in designing and delivering Patient Assistance Programs to assist patients in accessing and affording their prescribed therapy.
PRESS RELEASES
PODCASTS
Public Interest Podcast Interviews APSL
Jordan Cooper interviews APSL President, Dawn Bunch about the League's vision for empowering teens to be able to self organize around issues pertaining to their mental health.
Click here to listen!
