Dos Pueblos High School’s Wellness Center, located in room T-03, is officially open for students to consult with mental health professionals, take part in structured activities, or spend time in a secluded environment to decompress.
In the eyes of Wellness Coordinator Angela Montañez, the Wellness Center is intended to be a resource not only for students, but for their families as well. Montañez has already begun this networking by connecting with current and future DPHS families at school events.
Montañez is a full-time district employee who can be found in the Wellness Center every day. She previously worked in Youth Outreach for K-12 schools throughout the Santa Barbara Unified School District. Her position included working to provide support and connecting students with various mental health resources.
“We all experience [emotions], whether we share them with others or not,” Montañez said. “So, the reason why I feel students should come visit is because it’s an amazing opportunity here on campus … I really want them to know that it’s open for them.”
Montañez received her bachelor’s degree in Criminal Justice from Santa Barbara Community College, and her first counseling job was working for the Council of Alcohol and Drug Abuse as a Youth Service Specialist. It was there that she became passionate about working with teenagers.
“[High school is] a stage where so much is happening; you’re growing up, you’re transitioning into adulthood,” Montañez said. “As a teenager … I just feel like I remember those trusted adults that I had in my life who supported and encouraged me to really find what I wanted to do in the future.”
In her personal time, Montañez said she loves being with her children and partaking in a variety of hobbies, including spending time outdoors, cooking, and baking.
Montañez organizes all the events and activities of the Wellness Center, but is also there to provide individual conversational support. Despite having these capabilities, she is not a licensed therapist.
Associate Marriage and Family Therapists Tristan Westernoff and Jaime Garcia are available at the Wellness Center for one-on-one sessions by referral. As licensed in-school therapists, they offer services that are “more well-rounded and less specialized than a therapist who works in a certain modality,” according to Westernoff. Students can arrange to have weekly 45 to 50 minute sessions with either of these therapists, similar to a private practice.
“We’re just one more piece of that support network to students,” Garcia said. “So, come to us if you’re wanting to process some stuff that’s going on with your mental health in a way that you know that your friends can’t support you or that your academic [counselor] can’t support you.”
Before the COVID-19 pandemic, Garcia was doing community-based work with people experiencing homelessness in Santa Barbara, and she provided case management services through a local nonprofit. However, during the pandemic, she said she had “a lot of time” to reflect and decided that she wanted to work with students and their families. She then went to graduate school and received her master’s degree in Clinical Psychology.
“In my previous job, I only worked with adults,” Garcia said. “And, oftentimes, I would see adults going through stuff, and I would always be like, ‘Wow, I wonder if they had someone show them kindness when they were younger or believed in them.”
Outside of work, Garcia enjoys the “healing” she finds in nature as well as travel, particularly trying new foods in the places she travels to.
Westernoff has previously worked in schools as a paraprofessional in special education departments. He attended the University of California, Santa Barbara for his undergraduate degree and Antioch University for his master’s degree.
“I just love people and their stories,” Westernoff said. “Providing therapy is one way to learn about people and their stories, but also help them at the same time, so it’s those things combined.”
He enjoys working with high schoolers because of the “school atmosphere” and the state of self-discovery that most teenagers are in. Westernoff also enjoys being outdoors and surfing, which was a hobby that he began while studying at UCSB.
DPHS students can visit the Wellness Center at any point during school hours. However, if they want to visit during class, they must have a pass from a teacher, academic counselor, or the office. Students can drop in for periods of about 10-15 minutes during or after school hours. They can also go by referral. Montañez has created a QR code that students can scan to submit self-referrals and request appointments with herself or another professional.
“If students have already done the tour or have visited the Wellness Center, bring a friend over,” Montañez said. “I’m very happy to show them the space and really tell them what [the Wellness Center is] all about.”
