Offaly student announced as first place winner in major national art competition
Walk in My Shoes’ annual Mission Possible initiative celebrates student from county Offaly for their efforts to promote positive mental health through art
A STUDENT from Clara Youthreach in Co Offaly was announced as first-place winner at a ceremony for the Mission Possible School Achievement Awards, hosted by Walk in My Shoes in St Patrick’s University Hospital, Dublin 8 last week.
The Mission Possible School Achievement Awards is an annual competition from Walk in My Shoes, the flagship youth mental health initiative of St Patrick’s Mental Health Services. Mission Possible showcases the meaningful work schools, Youthreach centres and further education and training centres across the country are undertaking to foster positive mental health and wellbeing in the classroom and in the community.
For this year’s competition, students across Ireland were invited to design a poster that creatively shares a positive mental health message. Through art, words and imagination, students were invited to explore what positive mental health and wellbeing means to them - and help spark important conversations in their school communities and beyond.
Alisha Dwane from Clara Youthreach was announced as a the first-place winner in the ‘further education and training and Youthreach centres’ category for the poster, ‘There is Always Light at the End of the Tunnel’.
The winning students were joined at the awards ceremony by the competition judging panel: Paul Gilligan, CEO, St Patrick’s Mental Health Services; Tamara Nolan, Director of Communications and Advocacy, St Patrick’s Mental Health Services; and Jacqueline Toal, Art Therapist, St Patrick’s Mental Health Services.
Speaking about this year’s Mission Possible initiative, Paul Gilligan, CEO of St Patrick’s Mental Health Services and Mission Possible judge, said: “For the past nine years, Walk in My Shoes has been proudly running the national Mission Possible School Achievement Awards to showcase and celebrate the meaningful work of schools in promoting positive mental health. The calibre of this year’s entries once again demonstrates the resolute commitment of school staff and young people across the country to fostering positive mental health.
We know that art and creativity can significantly boost wellbeing, and I want to commend all entrants to this year’s awards for their creativity and originality in bringing to life positive mental health messages that challenge stigma in a visually appealing and imaginative way.”
This year’s competition was open to primary schools, secondary schools and Further Education and Training centres, including Youthreach. Entries in any visual art style were invited, from hand-drawn and painted posters to digital designs.
First-place winners in each category received a €1,000 cash prize for their school, a Mission Possible trophy, a role as a WIMS School Ambassador for the next academic year, a Walk in My Shoes School Support Package and one guaranteed place on the sought-after Walk in My Shoes Transition Year Programme for winners in the secondary school category. Runners-up received a €500 cash prize for their school, a Mission Possible trophy and a Walk in My Shoes Wellbeing Pack.
For more information about Walk in My Shoes and its range of resources and initiatives for young people, teachers and school staff and parents and guardians, visit walkinmyshoes.ie
Walk in My Shoes is St Patrick’s Mental Health Services’ flagship awareness and education initiative. Established in 2012, Walk in My Shoes runs campaigns throughout the year to promote positive mental health in schools and communities around Ireland, including the Mission Possible school achievement awards, the Frame of Mind competition, #MindYourSelfie free eBooks and School Resources, and the Transition Year Programme. For more, please visit walkinmyshoes.ie, or follow us on Facebook (WalkInMyShoes) or Instagram (@stpatricks_wims).
At Walk in My Shoes, we want to help schools share, celebrate and strengthen the great wellbeing work already happening across school communities. That’s why we are offering first-place winners in each category a role as WIMS School Ambassador - recognised leaders in promoting positive mental health and wellbeing.
Showcase their wellbeing initiatives and be recognised for the positive work they are doing
Share their journey - including successes, challenges, and key learnings - to help inspire other schools
Raise their school’s profile by having their work shared across the WIMS School Portal and social media channels
Contribute to a national wellbeing network, supporting schools to further their own wellbeing missions.
The Walk in My Shoes School Support Package is wellbeing pack including posters, wellbeing wall banners and other resources winning schools can use to continue their wellbeing initiatives. We will also provide up to four hours of consultation support for each WIMS School Ambassador on their mental health and wellbeing initiatives/projects.