The BE-HOPE App

Why do students need the Be-Hope App?

The Be-Hope App was developed in response to an overwhelming need for a 24/7 interactive resource to combat trauma, stress, loneliness, and other socio-emotional difficulties experienced by students on a daily basis. 

 •  Having positive social and emotional skills is important throughout life and can have an impact on how children and youth function at home, school, and in social situations. 

 •  When children and youth face social, emotional, or behavioral challenges, it can impact their safety and chances for school success and healthy relationships.

 •  Social and emotional disconnection also lead to violent and unstable neighborhoods, sometimes suicide. Children and adolescents with social and emotional challenges are underserved by the resources of most schools.

What does the Be-Hope App do?

The App offers Social and Emotional Learning (SEL) skill development and mental health support. Its customizable environment serves as a prevention and detection platform to help students, including the most at-risk students.  It also creates a safe space for community support to decrease isolation, and build peer support and acts of service. It is only accessible through school platforms. 

•  The multilingual APP addresses this need by providing students mobile access to a collection of interactive self-help and social interaction sections designed by professionals and students.  

•  For the first time, each student can have access to a 24/7 resource to help deal with a range of social and emotional challenges and community needs in an influential and positive way.

Who does the Be-Hope App serve?

-5th through 12th-grade students: phase 1 

What are the benefits of the Be-Hope App to the school population at large? 

• Through the Be-Hope App, students, teachers, and family members have easy access to 24/7 self-help therapeutic and social interaction tools designed by students for students and professionals.  The Be-Hope App was created in conjunction with a youth council through ongoing research, surveys, and dialog.

• With only a phone, the Be-Hope App can provide comfort, a way to bounce back for those struggling with anxiety, stress, loss of knowledge, social interaction and self-control, positive and healthy relationships, time-management, and self-motivation, and more.

• The results, proven by school-based SEL, are changed lives and more peaceful and stable school environments and neighborhoods.

Who created the Be-Hope App?

Partners in the Be-Hope program include the following organizations: Be the Peace - Be the Hope (BTPBTH), the  Texan-French Alliance for the Arts (TFAA), Rotary Clubs of Rotary District 5890 (Sharpstown and Houston  International), Rotary Foundation, Lovescaping,  the Baylor College of Medicine, Unbound, Arts Connect, the City of Houston Department of Education, and JRW Creative Group. 

The App teaches aspects of Social and Emotional learning (SEL), and addresses mental health and social needs through targeted sections, as follows:

Activities section

This section interactively teaches students the different aspects of Social and Emotional Learning (SEL) through hands-on learning. Students follow topic areas addressing essential life skills and challenges and explore each one of them through instructional videos, hands-on exercises/discovery polls, a confidential personal Diary section, and additional information about the nature of each topic/challenge. The Activities section includes a Welcome page that introduces SEL. Then, there are the guided approaches to Emotions, Self-Control, Self-Motivation, Time Management, Stress Relief, Relationships, Resilience, Optimizing the Brain (Neuroscience, Beliefs, Communication & Conflict Resolution, Empathy, Compassion. Each of these guides follows a similar format. 

Help with Life Challenges section

This section was developed by mental health professionals of the Baylor College of Medicine as well as professionals from BTPBTH and Unbound. It delicatelyguides studentstowards help for more seriouschallenges that can lead to stress and depression and gives direct connections to 24-hour resources for the most severemental health crises that could involve risks of self-harm and suicide.It also provides support with social media safety, healthy relationships, and boundaries. This part is especially critical as children and youth have been very hard hit by the emotional stressors of the global pandemic and shut-down. 

Posts section

Here, students can share with one another memories and events by posting pictures and short commentaries. This is designed as a tool for students to share what is important and memorable to them. Submitted posts are reviewed for content before being released for general viewing. SEL emphasizes sharing communications and taking actions to overcome being isolated. The Posts section allows students to share kind acts and things that are meaningful with classmates without being subjected to the possible bullying and harassment of traditional social media.

Workshops section

This section providesexercises that bolster the Activities components in an unstructured and playful manner.  Components include Reading Aloud, Multiplayer Games by which classmates can engage with one another in a spirit of fun, Memory exercises, Movement including playful exercise and dance, Exploration including guided internet tours of fascinating places and activities around the world, Art and Art Experiences including home art projects,and artistic offerings that can be Calmingincluding meditation and other stress-reduction techniques, Apps including selectedapplications that students can download to their phones to support and enhance SEL development, and Build Your Future which covers many different educational topics from simple to advanced levels. 

Get Involved

Here, students will find links to websites that host service projects focused on art offerings and experiences in which they can become engaged. From an  SEL perspective, it is crucial for students to appreciate the needs of others and to engage in activities that help others  rather than focusing on themselves. Therefore, the current chosen sites offer activities such as making artwork, poetry or music,  or writing letters to support and inspire others in need.

Good News

In this final section, students can post news articles and other multimedia content to share with their classmates’ news of children and youth who are helping others through humanitarian projectsusing the arts along with other disciplines. Again, SEL aims to take the focus away from one’s own problems and needs and to overcome depression and despair through recognizing and helping others in need. As with the Posts section, items posted by students to the Good News section are moderated (inspected for content) before being displayed to all classmates.

•We hope you have enjoyed this introduction to the Be-Hope App. Please join in our  Non-Profit goal of bringing the Be-Hope App to all students in need, no matter where they may be. 

You can contact us at bepeacebehope@gmail.com