An interview with Malena Malcheva (10th grade), Student Leader for Geo Milev’s BEST (Bulgarian English Speech and Debate Tournament) team. In addition to competing in debate and speech competitions regionally and nationally, students also organize a community project each year.
By Ivo Radev (9A)
Q: What is this year’s community project about?
Malena: It’s about raising mental health awareness in school. I think this is especially important because of our age. We, as teenagers, go through a lot of new life experiences and get to experience new feelings, so they may be things that we don’t know how to deal with. In my opinion, this could cause some mental issues in some cases, whether they are minor or major.
Q: What do you aim to achieve with it?
Malena: I hope to normalise taking care of mental health. There is nothing wrong with talking to a professional about the things you are experiencing; it is even preferable if you do so, if you think you’ve got issues with something. I want to make this something normal, as it seems like a big deal to a lot of students right now. If somebody goes to a therapist, they are automatically assumed to be crazy, when this is absolutely not the case. I hope to change the mindset of most students who think this way.
Q: What do you think the project will lead to as a result?
Malena: I think it will result in people being more aware about their feelings, being comfortable with what they’re experiencing, and taking care of it. I think it will also make students more observant in the way their words or actions may affect another person’s mental health.
Q: Where and when is the event going to take place? What activities are planned for it? Who can participate and how?
Malena: As we are currently still attending school online, we will have meetings in Teams once every two weeks, on Thursdays. We start on Thursday, Jan. 21 at 13:15. We are going to send the code for the team on Shkolo. Our school psychologist, Mariya Panteleeva, will talk about mental health issues that us teenagers may experience, how to handle stress, and many more topics. Everyone who wants to can just join the team and participate!
To make an appointment to talk, school psychologist Mariya Panteleeva can be reached by e_mail at [email protected] or by text/phone at 0879375123.
Students who are interested in joining BEST for debate or speech events, can contact Ms. Atanasova (8 A), [email protected] for more information. The club currently meets online on Wednesdays. It’s a great way to improve your English and have fun too!