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Saint Bernard’s College year-13 student Dallas Serj Reilly is campaigning for the government to do more for youth mental health.
He is no stranger to getting stuck in to achieve his goals.
Dallas is on the Student Youth Council and over the past few years has balanced Merit-Excellence in NCEA and run fundraisers and awareness campaigns for the Mayoral Election, 40-Hour Famine, Caritas, St Vincent De Paul, and Life Matters.
Now he says he is taking on his most challenging event yet. He is organising a march from Civic Square in Wellington to Parliament all in the name of student mental health.
He says the issue is not getting the focus it should and he has organised a march to parliament to get the politicians to take notice.
Students at Onslow College are also part of a group of thirteen colleges in the Wellington region to be helping with organising the march.
It will take place on Wednesday the 9th of September starting at Civic Square at midday.
“There was a guideline for mentally healthy schools that was brought up in 2001 which was sent to parliament and it has got lost and has never been revisited, and most schools are too scared to talk about the issue of mental health and suicide,” Dallas says.
“We are asking politicians to stop being lazy and revisit the 2001 Guidelines for Mentally Healthy Schools, and while doing this we will be working with Lesley Frederikson from the NZ Association of Optometrists and including eye tests within our guidelines for good reason,” he says.
“They talk about what’s the biggest issue facing the next generation, and they talk about climate, but youth suicide is just lingering in the background,” he says.
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