HELP FOR STUDENTS — Quinn Handzus, an eighth-grader at Harding Middle School, developed a QR code that helps students connect to the school’s student services check-in link. -- Contributed

STEUBENVILLE — Harding Middle School has introduced a student services check-in link to provide a voice for students who need assistance.

School social worker Shay Greiner said the link launched at the start of the school year already has shown promising results. Greiner said she recognized a need to expand access but wasn’t alone in the idea.

“We launched a student service check-in link on Google Classroom that students can access 24/7,” she said. “If they are in need of services, they can go to the check-in link and request services for mental health to academic support.”

She said the program began as an idea to ensure all 800 fifth-to-eighth-grade students at Harding were able to obtain support, then she learned a eighth-grader Quinn Handzus had the same concept in mind.

“We discussed doing it last year and a student coincidentally proposed a 4-H project similar to it, and then her mom contacted me,” Greiner explained. “It’s in collaboration with Quinn and we rolled out the link in August.”

Handzus developed a QR code as a project through the Steubenville Seedlings 4-H Club and it connects to the online link, which is available for students to access.

“I am a 4-H member and we normally do little projects. This year, it was on mental health issues for school, and I came up with a QR code that you scan with your phone,” she added. “If you need some help, you check in and put your name and the reason, then they send you down (to the office.)”

Handzus continued that she enjoyed creating something that could assist others.

“It feels good that I’m helping people. It helps me feel better about what I can do with the school,” she said.

Greiner said Handzus’s plan melded perfectly with her idea.

“Quinn focused on the mental health aspect and mine focused on any need. This could link students to any support and they can get help for mental health or academic aid. Quinn and I were motivated to give a voice to others who wouldn’t have one,” she explained.

More than 80 students have utilized the link, and Greiner expects the number to grow. She noted that a pupil could be shy or have anxiety issues, and this gives them a mechanism to reach out privately.

“We’ve had students contact us for mental health, math help, and if they are experiencing conflicts with people. We’ve also had students with quiet concerns, and this is a way to do it discreetly.”