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Teachers see progress after therapy is offered to students in Oak Ridge

Back in 2015 Ridgeview and Willow Brook Elementary partnered to create the STAR Program.

Students who attend school in the Oak Ridge School District have access to therapy right inside their schools thanks to Ridgeview Behavioral Services.

Back in 2015, Ridgeview and Willow Brook Elementary partnered to create the STAR Program. STAR stands for students together advancing resilience. It later spread to all schools in the district.

Jo Bruce is the director of the family resource center at Willow Brook. She said the decision came after teachers noticed there was a true need to bring help to the classroom.

"There started to be a diverse group of traumas and concerns and so we decided this was something we needed to do," Bruce said.

Amy Olson works at Ridgeview and helped coordinate the program. She said the idea is to give students the tools they need to get through difficult periods later in life.

"We know that in life things will happen, so we want them to know when those things arise, they can overcome anything," Olson said.

Jill Cagney is a STAR therapist and works at a few different schools each week. She said the work is about working through the difficult moments and celebrating the breakthroughs.

"It's that moment where you realize they've internalized what you've said and they plan to use it after they stop meeting you," Cagney said. "That's the moment you know this is awesome."

She said the thing to remember is that this kind of work means taking a step at a time and that's something she's hoping students will keep with them forever.

"It takes time but I want them to know they have someone who is there for them no matter how hard it gets and that is what matters most," Cagney said.

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