Reading, writing, relaxation: Wellness center opens at local elementary, funded in part by tax approved by city voters ⋆ The Palm Springs Post

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Cielo Vista Principal Juanita Perezchica speaks Monday during the opening celebration for the school’s new wellness center.

City officials and representatives from the Palm Springs Unified School District — along with members of the foundation that supports the district — threw open the doors to a retrofitted room this week that’s unlike any you might find elsewhere, for now.

A wellness center at Cielo Vista Charter School, opened at the start of the school year but officially dedicated Monday, is equipped with youth-friendly furniture, artwork, music, games, art supplies, and healthy snacks. The center, with mood lighting and aroma diffusers, also houses counselors — a resource “more important than ever in assisting our students,” according to Interim PSUSD Superintendent Tony Signoret.

“This is a safe space for kids to come and relax,” said Cielo Vista Principal Juanita Perezchica as she showed before and after pictures of the room to guests on Monday. “We all need that in life.

“This is open to students, guests, and the public. All you have to do is check in and you can use the room as well.”

The project was made possible thanks to $25,000 in Measure J funds from the city of Palm Springs. First approved by voters in 2011, Measure J is a one-cent sales tax that has funded numerous citywide services and capital improvement projects. A total of $100,000 was made available to the school district, which plans to open a wellness center in each of the four elementary schools in the city.

District officials and the Foundation for Palm Springs Unified School District don’t plan on stopping at the city limits as they build out a network of similar facilities. Eventually, all students at all 28 schools in the district will have a place to chill out, decompress, and pause to consider their mental health.

“Youth mental health needs have increased,” said Danielle McClain-Parks, the district’s mental health coordinator. “It’s important for students to identify their own mental health needs and for us to have facilities for them and resources to connect them with.”

Also helping those students is the fact they live in an area that understands their needs at school go beyond education.

“We are a very progressive district,” said Mark Gauthier, the foundation’s board president, “and we are fortunate to live in a progressive community.”