This month, Pell City High School students will host a special program designed to educate their peers on how to identify and discuss mental health conditions.

The PCHS Club SEM;COLON, a group of students dedicated to raising community awareness for conditions like anxiety and depression, will present Teen Mental Health First Aid Training on Monday, Nov. 28, from 5-7 p.m. at the Center for Education and Performing Arts in Pell City.

Attendees ages 15-18 can be certified during this training, but the event is open to all community members. Parents, teachers and anyone wishing to learn more about mental health and wellness are encouraged to attend.

Thanks to support from the Rotary Club of Pell City, dinner will be provided to teens who attend the training. Rotary has been active in 2022 in increasing awareness for the community’s mental health needs both in working with SEM;COLON and with the Pell City Mental Health Task Force.

Teen Mental Health First Aid helps adolescents learn the skills they need to have supportive conversations with their friends and how to get help from a responsible and trusted adult. The program will be led by the Addiction Prevention Coalition.

According to its website, apcbham.org, The Addiction Prevention Coalition (APC) is a non-profit community resource that provides in-school prevention programs, educational events, and a collection of support services.

SEM;COLON began in 2021 as a student-led mental health initiative that was recognized this year as a PCHS Club. Besides hosting numerous events inside the school, the Club produced a podcast and short film focused on suicide awareness, and most recently began a web series called SEM;COLON Sound-Out that features community conversations on the topics of anxiety, depression and suicide.

For more on SEM;COLON, find them on Facebook or Instagram or visit https://linktr.ee/_.semicolonn._

Teen Mental Health First Aid Training• Nov. 28, 5-7 p.m.

• CEPA in Pell City

• Free

• Dinner provided for ages 13-18

• Presented by SEM;COLON. Sponsored by the Addiction Prevention Coalition and the Greater Rotary Club of Pell City