Partnering with Challenge Success, a nonprofit organization affiliated with the Stanford Graduate School of Education, Northwood held a Well-Balanced Student workshop for parents on Monday, Oct. 13, from 6:30-7:30 p.m. The event focused on helping families redefine success and prioritize well-being over academic performance, using strategies that balance academics, extracurriculars and personal time. 

Challenge Success works with schools nationwide to promote student well-being, engagement and belonging inside and outside of school. Northwood’s Challenge Success team includes Thrive Club, Challenge Success Athletics Leadership Team and several staff and administration members. 

“The goal is to try to get parents and students to start a dialogue with each other,” science teacher Megan Stuart said. “Whether they’re feeling over-scheduled, we want students to feel like they have enough family time, like they’re getting enough sleep and all of that stuff.” 

Unlike previous years, this year’s workshop welcomed parents and staff from all five feeder elementary schools, Sierra Vista Middle School and Northwood High School.

“We are trying to create a kind of vertical alignment of the messaging,” Northwood principal Eric Keith said. “We realize a lot of times that when we have those conversations with families and with students about sleep and balance, sometimes it’s a little late in the game.” 

This event reflects the continued goals of Northwood’s Challenge Success team: promoting messaging beyond the linear high school-college-job path and responding to the hypercompetitive campus culture by working with PTSAs, student groups, the mental health counselors and other IUSD schools. 

“It’s important to find what success is. There’s not a single right path that you have to take and if you don’t get on that path, you’re never going to get there,” Keith said. “You can get to that end goal in so many different ways.”