SAFE club is leading the school in this year’s SAFE week, which is a week dedicated to educating students about seat belt safety, driving under the influence, and suicidal thoughts and tendencies among teens.

Nurse Dana Desjardins has spearheaded the planning for this week.

“There’s all these teenage problems, there’s all these things that you guys have to deal with,” Desjardins said. “We want students to know that mental illness is OK, it’s accepted. If we’re not here, the school’s not here to help you, your parents aren’t there to help you, your friends aren’t there to help you, then you can look at suicide ICT and they can help you. Don’t go alone.”

This year, SAFE week has featured therapy dogs, kittens, driving simulators and guest speakers.

Desjardins said she’s certainly seen a difference in student behavior thanks to SAFE.

“When I came here, there was about a wreck a day,” Desjardins said. “three or four wrecks a week. There are still wrecks happening, but they’re not in the general vicinity of the high school,” she said. “So I think you guys are getting the message. Our first seat belt survey was 88%. We’re now at 96%. I think we could get 100%, I’d like to get 100%.”

Desjardins also said she hopes that students are having fun while learning from SAFE.

“I just hope kids understand it,” she said. “I hope they’re having fun. I hope students would be enthusiastic. I really hope that we put enough out there that people are excited.”