MGH Survey Data Shows Substance Use, Mental Health Issues Among Haverhill Teens
New data show that more than half of high school students are at risk for depression and/or anxiety and approximately 20% of all students have had suicidal thoughts, according to information presented to Haverhill city councilors this week. A survey conducted by Massachusetts General Hospital and the Harvard Medical School Center for Addiction Medicine revealed that substance use and mental health concerns go hand in hand, but Dr. Randi Schuster of the Massachusetts General Hospital Center for Addiction Medicine told councilors there is a chance to course correct. “Substance use for these kids is not happening in a vacuum,” she told the Council. “Very few kids that I am working with clinically say I am getting high because it’s fun, I love it.
Superintendent Margaret Marotta briefed the School Committee Thursday night to allay rumors of weapons used at a recent fight at Haverhill High School. As only WHAV reported previously, Marotta confirmed that a fight took place at Haverhill High School on Wednesday and noted that reports of weapons were untrue. “I’ll call it a fight, although I think it was a one-sided fight,” she said.
Haverhill City Auditor and Chief Financial Officer Angel A. Perkins this past Tuesday was cheered by city councilors after being presented with the Distinguished Budget Presentation Award for the city’s current year budget. The award, presented by Chicago-based Government Finance Officers Association, represents “the commitment of the governing body and staff to meeting the highest principles in governmental budgeting, according to a news release from the organization. Mayor Melinda E. Barrett called Perkins the “wizard” behind the budget.
The Merrimack Valley Credit Union recently hosted a community Shred Day at its Lawrence, Waltham and Bridgewater locations. Credit union members and the public brought old, unwanted documents to be shredded. Representatives said proper disposal of documents, such as shredding, helps ensure identity theft protection as shredding is the safest way to dispose of documents containing a signature, account number, social security number or medical or legal information that are no longer necessary to retain.
