Meet Savio Stuart

My name is Savio Stuart. I graduated from Freire Charter School as a part of the school’s first graduating class of 2019. I was a four-sport student athlete, member of student council and the National Honor Society. I was also a student ambassador and student representative for the school. I was always advocating for the student body and wanting the best for my peers. Freire made this easy for me. With student voice and family being parts of the school’s core values, students understood that their voice matters and once they speak out on something—change will come. So I used my platform as a student ambassador and spoke out for kids.

Mental health affects us every single day. In low-income areas especially, like the one where my high school was located, the need for mental health supports are at an all-time high.

It’s sometimes frowned upon in low-income communities to seek help or support. When kids hold everything in to themselves, they can become distant. Adding the burden of excelling in school can make life feel extremely overwhelming.

This may look different for every student. I had friends who were coming to school every day from homes with no lights, drug addict parents and battling memories of the heinous acts committed on them as toddlers. A few of them acted out in school and allowed their grades to slip while others were able to put their pain on the backburner and prioritize excelling academically.

Our school needed professional mental health supports. So, around my sophomore year I began getting advocating to my co-heads of school. Finally by our senior year, we had access to free, qualified, and efficient emotional support counselors right in the school. This was a pivotal moment for Freire’s students because now, for the first time, they had a consistent outlet. They had a safe space to release and express their emotions. This improved students’ behaviors and academic success.  You can only be your best on the outside if you’re feeling your best on the inside. Students took advantage of the counselors provided.

Because of my passion to make change and be an advocate for those around me and my community, I will be attending the University of Delaware this fall and major in political science. My goal is to one day use a bigger platform and network to create change in my community.