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Therapy dog Willow credited with calming students at Mesa Unified District schools
Summary
Speakers during a Mesa Unified District (4235) meeting described a therapy dog named Willow as supporting students' social-emotional learning, helping de-escalate stress and improving classroom climate; no formal actions were recorded.
Students and a program representative said at a Mesa Unified District (4235) meeting that a therapy dog named Willow supports social-emotional learning and helps de-escalate stress and anxiety for students and staff.
Speakers said Willow has improved classroom atmosphere and, in some cases, motivated students to come to school. A representative for the visiting program described the dogs as a tool for staff to bridge gaps with students who are hard to reach.
A program representative, Haz and Pears, said, "Haz and Pears, we bring therapy dogs to Mesa Public Schools to support students and staff with social emotional learning, mental health, supporting stress and anxiety. We hope that our dogs are able to deescalate situations and be a support for teachers and staff to bridge the gap where they're unable to connect with a student."
A student described the personal effect Willow has had: "Like, if you're having a bad day, you can, like, go over, like, pet willow, and it makes you feel, like, so much better. Miss Grover said that we can, like, talk to her and give her help. She just comforts a lot of us, and it's really nice. Yeah."
A teacher attending the meeting said she had seen changes in students' attitudes: "I've seen her really help change kids' attitudes towards school. I had kids last year that said in journal entries that when Willow was here, that made their day. Like, that was why they came to school was to see Willow."
Haz and Pears added, "Willow is very special. She is so, so sweet. She passed all of her training with flying colors. And when you walk in the room, you can just feel this sense of calm and peace. It makes it feel like home." The program representative concluded, "And so the overall environment in the room has completely changed."
The meeting transcript records these statements but shows no formal motions, votes, or directives related to the therapy-dog visits. No funding amounts, formal policies, or expansion plans were presented or decided at the meeting.
