Grace College Partners with Kosciusko Cares Youth Services to Host Brain Summit

Grace College is partnering with Kosciusko Cares Youth Services to host a Brain Summit for high school students. The summit, to take place on Grace’s campus, will include activities, discussions and break-out groups to educate high schoolers on substance use prevention. The event will take place on Friday, March 22, 11 a.m. – 2 p.m. in the Westminster Hall banquet rooms, 105 9th St., Winona Lake.

“We are really excited to partner with Grace in this event,” said Heidi Blake, drug-free communities director at Kosciusko Cares. “This is a great opportunity for the community and Kosciusko Cares, as well as for Grace faculty and students to share their knowledge through engaging activities.”

The event is funded by a grant through the Kosciusko Drug-Free Coalition. The goal is to educate and empower teens in Kosciusko County and help them make healthy choices.

“Kosciusko County has higher-than-average substance use rates according to the self-reported survey in the high schools, so we know that is something we really need to address in our community,” said Blake. “The two substances we see most used by teens in the county are alcohol and nicotine, primarily vaping.”

Kosciusko Cares Youth Services intends to change this by advocating for, supporting and promoting healthy youth development. The Brain Summit will assist the organization in its mission by engaging students in a number of activities pertaining to stress, brain activity, development and nutrition. There will be five breakout groups led by Grace faculty of various disciplines, with activities administered by Grace students.

“I’m especially excited about having students in my ‘Forensics Interviewing’ course facilitate activities we would have done in the classroom anyway – so we’re flipping the script,” said Dr. Kelly Arney, dean of the School of Behavioral Sciences. “Learning by teaching is a great way to make the content memorable. Plus, this is a cool opportunity for my students to rally around high schoolers in a mentoring capacity for the afternoon.”

According to Arney, Grace is well-suited to host the event.

“Grace has the people, the space and the knowledge to come alongside our community in substance use prevention, so it’s a no-brainer that we are going to help in any way we can,” said Arney. “We hope the summit positively engages local students, giving them information while also having fun.”