A project-based learning assignment at Indian Lake High School is making a lasting impact by connecting students with local mental health resources.
Each year, Indian Lake High School English teacher Elizabeth DeLeeuw challenges her 11th-grade students to make a positive difference in their community through a project called “A Pebble Into a Pond.”
DeLeeuw says project-based learning helps motivate students to gain knowledge and retain it longer while giving them an opportunity to apply what they learn in school to real-world situations.
Last spring, then-juniors Sarah Mohler, Jacquelyn Aurora Skryabina Goslee, Morgan Hill Slaven, Gabe Stidam and Kaylynn Reesor decided to focus their project on teen mental health.
Goslee said the group wanted to help students understand that they do not have to struggle alone when dealing with mental health challenges.
With limited time and a small budget, the students decided the best way to make an impact was to create a centralized list of local mental health resources.
The group reached out to District Technology Coordinator Ron Borgerding and Public Relations Specialist Jamie Ross about adding a mental health resources page to the Indian Lake Schools website and mobile app.
“The staff was very supportive of our idea and got right to work,” Slaven said.
The students’ work has now resulted in a comprehensive mental health resource page available on the Indian Lake Schools website under the Students tab. The same information can be accessed through the Student Health icon in the Indian Lake Schools app.
The resource list includes the free 24-hour 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline, which provides support during a mental health crisis, as well as 211, which connects people with local health, social service and government resources.
The list also includes information about a local domestic violence shelter and a local facility providing drug abuse recovery services.
Now a senior at Indian Lake High School, Mohler said she is proud to see the project become a resource students can actually use.
“I think pushing 211 and 988 is really good because it helps connect kids to stuff they desperately need,” Mohler said.
The project is another example of how Indian Lake’s project-based learning assignments can lead to changes that extend beyond the classroom.
In 2025, another “A Pebble Into a Pond” project focused on adding more variety to the school cafeteria.
After researching the issue and presenting their findings, students helped lead to several new meal options being added to the school menu.
