“We are so grateful to have had the opportunity to create this space for our students,” Orchard Valley Middle School counselor Sarah Doherty said.
Thanks to the efforts of its counseling office and two grants worth $2,099 from the Washington Township Education Foundation, Orchard Valley Middle School has a wellness room.
The designated room is a place where students can go if they feel anxious, upset or just need a moment to collect themselves. With the foundation grants, the school created a space that is both soothing and relaxing, with mood lighting, a television that provides calming scenes and music and several options for comfortable seating.
Items available to students in the room include an assortment of fidget toys, arts and crafts supplies, a sand garden, a sensory board and textured stickers.
“We are so grateful to have had the opportunity to create this space for our students,” Orchard Valley counselor Sarah Doherty said. “To see this space utilized every single day, and to know it is truly benefitting all of our students – whether it be for regulation, relaxation, or sensory input – is truly a blessing.”
“We appreciate the Washington Township Education Foundation’s continued commitment to making projects like this, which directly benefit our students and are not possible through traditional budget purchasing processes, yet possible through grant funding,” added counseling secretary Rebecca Burr.
The foundation – created in 1996 – is a nonprofit that supports township schools. It has contributed more than $1 million to various school projects.
For more information on joining the foundation, contact Heather Sullivan at (856) 589-6644, ext. 6321.
