The Mind Inside
Full film available now. This is the second episode in The Mind Inside, a docuseries exploring mental health in public schools.
2019 // 29:58 // Multiple Locations
The Mind Inside, a docuseries, explores the landscape of mental health issues in Nebraska’s public schools.
Based on interviews with students, teachers, and medical experts, the second episode of this I Love Public Schools Films series uncovers how the ever-changing social media landscape affects what happens in the classroom and the lasting impact on students’ mental health.
With remarkable candor, Episode Two illustrates the nuances of the digital and real worlds of today’s student, where the development of the adolescent brain and vulnerabilities of growing up are compounded by daily, persistent online interactions.

The 30-minute film includes the story of Reid Adler, a victim of cyberbullying and the inspiration behind the metro-area schools #BeKind initiative. The piece weaves together Reid’s story, told by staff members at Ralston High School, and blends student voices that describe the realities of today’s school experience, complicated by social media.
With research indicating a clear relationship between the amount of time spent on social media and an inclination to feel depressed and anxious, the conversation about social media becomes deeply connected with mental health. Throughout the film, real students reveal the ways this impacts their daily lives. From peer pressure to sexting, picture-perfect selfies and online memes, expressing the difficult feelings and behaviors often associated with adolescence conflicts with the happy, image-focused Internet identity amassed in youth culture today.

Informative and heartbreaking, this episode provides a framework for discussion around empowering a balance of appropriate media use and keeping students in a safe, productive, and positive environment online and in the real world.
More shorts and episodes in The Mind Inside series will be released throughout 2020. Watch Episode One and learn more about the series.
Anytime you’re dealing with a population of people, and certainly teenagers, you’re dealing with all sorts of levels of mental health, qualities of mental health. We have an insight into kids’ mental health status and it’s changed a lot, what children share, what they experience, and the challenges as a teacher has changed a lot because of [social media].”
— Beth McGrath, Ralston High School English teacher

Beth McGrath
English Teacher
Ralston High School
With more than 32 years of teaching experience, English teacher Beth McGrath provides first-hand examples of the dynamic change in classroom behavior over time. Her past experiences include interdisciplinary team teaching, alternative education settings, curriculum and technology committees, and cooperating educators for clinical practice.

Cammie Weland
Social Studies Teacher
Ralston High School
With more than a decade in the classroom, social studies teacher Cammie Weland shares how she's experienced a shift in classroom culture. Due to a myriad of societal influences combined with an influx of cell phones and social media, teaching today has changed and she shares the expectations and reality of what teachers are up against.

Dr. Jeff Bostic, MD, EDD
Professor of Child Psychiatry
Georgetown University
Faculty at Georgetown University Hospital, Dr. Bostic provides a national, medical perspective on the issue of brain development and social media, contextualizing what’s happening in the classroom.

Dr. Mark Adler, EDD
Superintendent
Ralston Public Schools
Since the death of his son in 2016, Dr. Adler has spoken with more than 30,000 people about bullying, appropriate use of technology, suicide, and spreading kindness and hope. In the film, he shares the story of Reid, a victim of cyberbullying and the inspiration behind the metro-area schools #BeKind initiative.

Jason Jackson
Social Studies Teacher
Ralston High School
High school social studies teachers Jason Jackson provides his perspective on the classroom today, the pressure technology has placed on the profession, and how teachers’ hopes and interpersonal investment in students has increased in recent years.

Stacy Athow
Director of School Counseling
Ralston High School
With more than 20 years of experience, Athows, Director of Guidance Counseling, shares the complexities of counseling today and the need to increase mental health resources for students. Additionally, she coordinates the High Ability Learner (HAL) program and serves as the College Access Grant Administrator.

6th Graders
Millard North Middle School

Freshmen-Seniors
Wilber-Clatonia High School

Juniors-Seniors
Omaha Central High School

Sally Nellson
Director
Since 2011, Sally has interviewed more than 500 people and directed more than 40 films to raise awareness about the high-quality public education in Nebraska. Most recently she has turned her attention to creating longer-form I Love Public Schools films, documentaries focused on the ways societal issues impact public schools and what schools are doing to protect, understand, and empower students to be successful. Prior to this campaign, Sally ran a successful practice providing creative direction and story development for many of the largest banks and investment managers in the country. Sally is a proud graduate of Ashland-Greenwood High School.
Boys Town Social Media Safety
From guides and emails, parenting tips and access to experts, the Boys Town Social Media Safety resources help address cyber safety for kids and provide actionable steps for families.
Common Sense Media Digital Citizenship Toolkit
Educate students about Internet safety, appropriate online behavior, and cyberbullying. The free Common SenseMedia toolkit provides education for educators and parents alike.
Read More
Reid Adler Memorial Kindness Scholarship / The RA13 Legacy
The RA13 Legacy fund has been established within the Ralston Schools Foundation and is used to fund student scholarships and to provide resources to other projects or activities that promote kindness, service, leadership, and outreach.
START
START helps families use tech with intention with the hope kids grow up captivated by life, not screens.

Beth McGrath
English Teacher
Ralston High School
With more than 32 years of teaching experience, English teacher Beth McGrath provides first-hand examples of the dynamic change in classroom behavior over time. Her past experiences include interdisciplinary team teaching, alternative education settings, curriculum and technology committees, and cooperating educators for clinical practice.

Cammie Weland
Social Studies Teacher
Ralston High School
With more than a decade in the classroom, social studies teacher Cammie Weland shares how she's experienced a shift in classroom culture. Due to a myriad of societal influences combined with an influx of cell phones and social media, teaching today has changed and she shares the expectations and reality of what teachers are up against.

Dr. Jeff Bostic, MD, EDD
Professor of Child Psychiatry
Georgetown University
Faculty at Georgetown University Hospital, Dr. Bostic provides a national, medical perspective on the issue of brain development and social media, contextualizing what’s happening in the classroom.

Dr. Mark Adler, EDD
Superintendent
Ralston Public Schools
Since the death of his son in 2016, Dr. Adler has spoken with more than 30,000 people about bullying, appropriate use of technology, suicide, and spreading kindness and hope. In the film, he shares the story of Reid, a victim of cyberbullying and the inspiration behind the metro-area schools #BeKind initiative.

Jason Jackson
Social Studies Teacher
Ralston High School
High school social studies teachers Jason Jackson provides his perspective on the classroom today, the pressure technology has placed on the profession, and how teachers’ hopes and interpersonal investment in students has increased in recent years.

Stacy Athow
Director of School Counseling
Ralston High School
With more than 20 years of experience, Athows, Director of Guidance Counseling, shares the complexities of counseling today and the need to increase mental health resources for students. Additionally, she coordinates the High Ability Learner (HAL) program and serves as the College Access Grant Administrator.

6th Graders
Millard North Middle School

Freshmen-Seniors
Wilber-Clatonia High School

Juniors-Seniors
Omaha Central High School

Sally Nellson
Director
Since 2011, Sally has interviewed more than 500 people and directed more than 40 films to raise awareness about the high-quality public education in Nebraska. Most recently she has turned her attention to creating longer-form I Love Public Schools films, documentaries focused on the ways societal issues impact public schools and what schools are doing to protect, understand, and empower students to be successful. Prior to this campaign, Sally ran a successful practice providing creative direction and story development for many of the largest banks and investment managers in the country. Sally is a proud graduate of Ashland-Greenwood High School.
Boys Town Social Media Safety
From guides and emails, parenting tips and access to experts, the Boys Town Social Media Safety resources help address cyber safety for kids and provide actionable steps for families.
Common Sense Media Digital Citizenship Toolkit
Educate students about Internet safety, appropriate online behavior, and cyberbullying. The free Common SenseMedia toolkit provides education for educators and parents alike.
Read More
Reid Adler Memorial Kindness Scholarship / The RA13 Legacy
The RA13 Legacy fund has been established within the Ralston Schools Foundation and is used to fund student scholarships and to provide resources to other projects or activities that promote kindness, service, leadership, and outreach.
START
START helps families use tech with intention with the hope kids grow up captivated by life, not screens.
Send us your comments or questions by filling out the form below.
Your latest film helped me remember that learning can only be maximized when students feel safe and supported. We have to continue to “seek first to understand” and not dismiss the foundational importance of relationships and connectivity. On behalf of my colleagues, we are grateful for your organization having the courage and foresight to continue to tell the stories of our students, staff, and families.”
— Michael T. Hart, Director of Human Resources and School Accreditation Norfolk Public Schools
For 30 minutes at a time, I Love Public Schools takes us into a young person’s world, a place far more complex now than it was then.”
— Nebraska Public Schools Advantage
Your video [series] got us talking about mental health issues openly and honestly. If this conversation can continue, and we can eventually educate all students about mental health, what a great gift you have started.”
— Glen Wragge, Instructor School of Health and Kinesiology University of Nebraska at Omaha
This is well worth the time to watch. I think for people outside of the school system it would be extremely eye-opening. I Love Public Schools has created so many great videos but The Mind Inside series has been extremely impactful and shines a light on the mental health struggles of children and parents that so greatly impacts our education system and our communities.”
— Melissa Jantz, Preschool Principal at Norfolk Public Schools
Send us your comments or questions by filling out the form below.