Program to be held at middle/high school library

While Clintonville’s educators are charged with keeping students safe during school hours, the Clintonville School District along with the Mental Health Committee have extended their assistance to district families outside of the typical school day.

Since the beginning of the 2022-23 school year, the CMS/CHS Monthly Newsletters have featured topics such as navigating technology as a parent, bullying and dating violence.

Managing Media Madness is slated from 5-6:30 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 2, in the Clintonville Middle/High School Library.
For many school districts, digital learning has become the norm. Students do homework on assigned computers and tablets, and legal guardians have access to grades and teacher notes on the web.

But alongside the convenience of virtual life is the danger, which Clintonville educators hope the program will explain to those in attendance.

According to Clintonville High School Principal Kelly Zeinert, the upcoming program aligns with the mission and vision of the district: Learning how to keep up with a child’s technology use, the impact of technology on a child’s mental health, and providing parents with valuable resources to help manage the media madness.

Suzette Fountain, Clintonville School District social worker and Mental Health Committee member, asaid ttendance numbers for these events tend to fluctuate between 8-10 visitors. To increase numbers, the district will serve a free meal for all who attend Child care will also be provided.

“Our goal is always to increase attendance and participation,” said Jody Lehman, member of the Clintonville Public School District Mental Health Team as well as Clintonville Middle School counselor.

For the past few years, these events have offered parents and families in the district the chance to meet with leaders from the district while discussing important topics.

Technology is one of many double edged swords among these issues: It presents its own set of problems alongside positives.

“Technology is becoming more and more a part of our world and our children’s world,” said Zeinert. “We want parents to be aware of what’s out there and what’s the good/bad.”

“It’s amazing to me how easy just a click of the button can make a difference in what your child is looking at,” she said.

She encourages parents to be vigilant, scoping out even the seemingly “safe” websites while monitoring screen time.

“Talk with your kids,” she said. “Be there with your kids. Monitor what they are doing and who they are talking to. More importantly, don’t be afraid to limit screen time. We survived without constantly being tied to technology – our kids can as well”