* Healthy Minds: Curiosity and Connection

Healthy Minds: Curiosity and Connection

Virtual Event, Wednesday, April 13, 2022 10am – 1pm

The Healthy Minds virtual conference is a collaborative effort of many youth-serving organizations in North Central Massachusetts (and beyond!). 

Click here to visit the event website!

Registration is open! Is your school in? Check below:

• South Street Elementary School
• McKay Arts Academy (Elementary and Middle)
• Fitchburg High School
• Gardner High School
• Murdock High School
• NoSo (Northern MA, Southern NH) Homeschool Group

The community partners who are hosting this event, along with MWCC’s Portrait of a Graduate initiative:

Gardner CAC, Growing Places, Heal Winchendon, LUK., Inc., MOC Inc., Pathways for Change

What do we mean when we say “healthy”?

Healthy is a little different for everyone. For some it might be eating fruits and veggies or getting plenty of exercise each week. For others, it might be learning some ways to manage stress or deal with feeling lonely. And for others, it might be picking up some new skills or habits to set you up for a successful future life, like learning how to keep a healthy budget for yourself, or discover jobs that fulfill you.

The theme for the 2nd Annual Healthy Minds Youth Conference is Curiosity & Connection. We have been hearing from students about their struggles these last couple of years: to learn, make friends, be part of a community, be present, have goals, and so much more. For many, it is a challenge to feel hopeful about the future. Rather than emphasize the challenges, we want to reframe things for young people to take ownership over their own dreams and futures. Therefore, it was this mindset that helped us make the theme of Curiosity & Connection…two positive ways forward that can resonate with students of all ages in a fun and rewarding way that we believe can infuse hope back into the lives that are not feeling so hopeful these days!

Tell me more about Curiosity & Connection!

Curiosity is probably self-explanatory in a way, but it also seems to be a forgotten or lost skill. With our frantic pace of catching up on lost learning and rebuilding our new normal, it is easy to forget to chill out and have fun. Who has time to be playful these days anyway? However, when we are playful and take ourselves less seriously, we have the courage to try new things, play with new ideas, and explore and dabble…and all of those other enjoyable activities! For us, curiosity is a gateway to rediscovering what makes us happy and fulfilled, dreaming and setting goals for ourselves, and ultimately, thriving.

We think of connection not only as connecting as individuals in meaningful relationships, but also as an awareness of how things are interdependent in meaningful ways. Connections bring joy and purpose to our lives, and make small, individual pieces part of a stronger whole. Connection occurs when we are seeking belonging in our community, understanding how an academic concept has relevance in our everyday world, and gathering momentum for collaborative change.

Join students of the North Central Mass community as we learn from each other, from passionate leaders, and from community organizations who want to support you. This year’s Healthy Minds event brings health and real-world skill-building to K-12 schools across the region with a theme of “Curiosity and Connection”. Teachers and students will be able to select from breakout sessions that spark personal interests, satisfy curiosity, and help them plan for their future.

Please consider supporting 1500+ youth from North Central Mass by sponsoring this exciting and unique event. For sponsorship opportunities please visit https://uwyv.mwcc.edu/support-our-efforts/sponsor/

Thank you to our 2022 Healthy Minds sponsors