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Division seeks $10,635 VDOE microgrant for student wellness pilot on social media overuse
Summary
A proposed microgrant would pilot a multi-pronged student wellness project at four Equity & Excellence Learning Centers to address social media and internet overuse through mindfulness, staff webinars and parent engagement.
Norfolk's student wellness office described a Virginia Department of Education microgrant to pilot interventions addressing social-media and internet overuse at four Equity & Excellence Learning Centers (EELCs).
Doctor Cole (presenting for the student wellness team) said the $10,635 grant, if accepted, would fund a mindfulness program for students, a speaker/webinar addressing mental-health concerns linked to social-media overuse, and a professional-development resource library for staff and parents at the selected schools. The grant application was prepared with the Division of Student Wellness and the Office of Early Learning (Title I) and must be presented to the board for approval before formal acceptance.
Board members asked how the division will measure impact. Wellness staff said primary metrics will include school-recorded phone/cell-phone infractions, parent-engagement measures, and use of the provided resources; staff also cited national research about adolescent internet- and social-media-related harms and said the pilot is intended to produce lessons for broader replication if effective. A wellness director said the program will include student-facing activities, staff training (webinar) and parent-facing outreach and materials.
Presenters said the pilot is intended as an early intervention; if outcomes are positive, staff will recommend scaling the program to additional schools and will return to the board for approvals and funding as needed.
