Someone to Count On: HCS Builds Connections on Trusted Adult Thursday

Who is someone you know you can count on?

That question is at the heart of Trusted Adult Thursday as Harnett County Schools continues Start With Hello Week.

Throughout the week, students have been encouraged to make new connections, include others and look out for the people around them. On Thursday, part of that focus turns toward the adults who help students feel safe, supported and heard.

A trusted adult doesn't have to hold a particular title. It could be a parent or family member, teacher, coach, counselor, bus driver, administrator, support staff member, neighbor or another adult in the community.

What matters is knowing, "I can go to this person when I need help."

Having a trusted adult matters.

Research suggests those relationships can make a real difference.

Sandy Hook Promise reports that young people who can identify and access trusted adults are nearly half as likely to engage in risky behaviors and twice as likely to engage in prosocial behaviors.

Trusted adults also play an important role when something is wrong. Sandy Hook Promise's Say Something program teaches students to recognize warning signs and reach out to a trusted adult rather than trying to handle a serious concern on their own.

That's why Thursday isn't only an opportunity for students to think about the adults they trust. It's also an opportunity for adults to ask themselves an important question:

Would a young person feel comfortable coming to me?

Being a trusted adult can mean listening when a student needs to talk, taking a concern seriously, offering encouragement or helping connect a young person with additional support when they need it.

But Trusted Adult Thursday is only one part of what's happening across HCS today.

Students are also continuing to put the broader message of Start With Hello into action in different ways. At some schools, students are using conversation starters during lunch to learn more about the people sitting around them. Others are being challenged to talk with someone new, offer a fist bump, include someone in a conversation or simply make another person feel noticed.

The activities look different from school to school, and that's the point. Building connection doesn't require one particular activity.

It can be a conversation over lunch.

A fist bump in the hallway.

An invitation to join the group.

A student reaching out to someone new.

Or an adult making sure a young person knows there is someone ready to listen.

Monday started with a simple hello. As the week continues, students are seeing where that hello can lead: to a conversation, a new connection and, sometimes, a relationship with someone they know they can count on.

Know who you can count on. Be someone others can count on. And don't underestimate what can begin with a simple hello.