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Speaker Jeff Yalden visited Leonardtown High School earlier this month to give a motivational speech, but instead, he reportedly made claims of self-harm being a good thing, "trauma dumped" on them, and acted questionably with some students.
According to The Bay Net, there were also reports of Yalden kissing multiple female students on the cheek during his appearance. There were also reports of Yalden broaching the subject of suicide and self-harm with the teens.
The Southern Maryland Chronicle reported that students felt “trauma dumped” as he shared traumatic life stories in gripping detail with his teenage audience.
Serenity Place, a therapeutic and counseling service based out of Leonardtown, has been critical of Yalden online following his appearance and is taking steps to bar him from returning to the high school.
“Just spoke to the school administration regarding the speaker at (Leonardtown High School),” they posted on Facebook. “They are apparently measuring the negative response based on only a few calls made.
“If you want the speaker removed from ever being invited back, please call the superintendent’s office,” they continued. “This will need a community push so please help remove this speaker from ever coming back. If only (five) kids were encouraged to cut or hurt themselves, that’s (five) too many.”
Prior to his appearance, Yalden appeared on Leonardtown High School TV, where he spoke with student journalists about his past and commitment to assisting students with their mental health and crisis intervention.
“I was a teacher in New Hampshire, but I wasn’t a curriculum guy,” he said. “I liked talking with students about the things I struggled with when I was a student ..."
The complete interview can be found here.
“I struggled as a student with self-esteem, about being smart enough about trying to fit in,” Yalden continued. “As an athlete, I was more concerned about how my uniform looked … the socks … than playing the actual game.”
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