Oakmont Literacy Day: Guest Speaker Ivy Watson and Faculty-led Activities Help Students Strive Toward Wellness

Brian Sandjong, Reporter • October 9, 2025

In the years after the COVID-19 pandemic, Oakmont Regional High School has strived to bring the school back to normalcy and make school an enjoyable experience for everyone. With this goal in mind, leaders focused on this theme for Literacy Day 2025.

Students were invited to read small portions of books, such as Simone Biles and the Most Human Meaning of Courage, listen to an episode of a podcast like What Comes After Gold, with Olympian Missy Franklin, and watch a documentary such as Frida. All of these assignments were themed around mental wellness and self-care.

Arts and crafts in the library (Gianna Baker )

During Literacy Day, students enjoyed a school-wide, campus-wide lunch and then were able to attend two faculty-led sessions in classrooms of their choice. Some of the different activities offered were a cooking room, a video game room, a board game room, Karaoke, knot tying, and many more. There was a little bit of something for everyone.

Wellness Day Activity of Improv led by teacher, Mr. Sam Parker (Tatum Bahosh)

Students Playing Video Games (Tatum Bahosh )

When Oakmont senior Eli Christ was asked if he enjoyed the literacy day and if he would recommend it again, he said, “It was good and I would recommend it for the future.” It was enjoyed by many around the school.

Students begging to be let into karaoke (Gianna Baker )

Ivy Watson is a former D1 student Athlete who suffered with depression and now helps students find ways to cope with theirs.

Ivy Watson is a mental health and resilience keynote speaker and a former All-American athlete. At one point, she was even a top 30 NCAA Woman of the Year finalist for track and field. Through all of this, she suffered with anxiety, self-doubt, and burnout in silence. This led her to quit track and field, which would later reveal her passion for public speaking, advocating for mental health, and teaching different coping strategies to those struggling.

Her presentation discussed being vulnerable and that “It’s ok not to be ok.” She started by sharing her experience with being in a highly competitive sport, and the stress and pressure that came with it. She opened up about her experiences and struggles and how she dealt with them. Being an athlete, she understands the stress many students feel to be the best or to win all the time.

She taught the student body and faculty many strategies that help calm our nerves and limit negative self-talk. Some strategies were positive affirmations, reaching out for help, and the Emotional Freedom Technique (EFT) tapping. She demonstrated them and urged us to practice alongside her so we could use these techniques when needed.

To conclude the presentation, Watson reminded us that many people around us are willing to help if we’re struggling and that ‘it’s okay not to be okay.’

Huge thank you to the organizers of the event, the Summer Literacy Committee, made up of Mr. Dewhurst, Ms. DiMauro, Ms. Dubovick, Ms. Cote, Ms. Martin, and Dr. Stassen, and headed by Ms. Jenna Morin. Another big thank you to the Ashburnham Westminster Foundation for Academic Excellence (AWFAE) and the Oakmont Class of 2020, who sponsored this event.

*Several Oakmonitor staff members contributed to this article

About the Contributors

Brian Sandjong, Reporter

Brian Sandjong is a Junior who is a part of class 2026 at Oakmont Regional High School and is a reporter for The Brian Sandjong is a Junior who is a part of class 2026 at Oakmont Regional High School and is a reporter for The Oakmonitor. Brian has been on The Oakmonitor for 3 years and is very excited to do it for a third time. Brian is also a part of French Honors Society and president of the class of 2026. He enjoys Basketball, running, cooking, and reading in his downtime. He is smart, outgoing, and hardworking and strives to help make The Oakmonitor the best it can be.

Tatum Bahosh, Reporter

Tatum Bahosh is a part of the Class of 2029 at Oakmont Regional High School. This is her first year being a reporter for The Oakmonitor. When she has free time, Tatum enjoys reading, writing, listening to music, and shopping. She also enjoys binge watching her favorite shows, hanging out with her friends, family and her dog. She is very thrilled to contribute to The Oakmonitor this year.

Gianna Baker, Reporter

Gianna Baker is a part of the Class of 2029 at Oakmont Regional High School. This is her first year being a reporter for The Oakmonitor. During the summer, she does competitive horse shows, and runs her hunting dogs. When she can get free time, she likes to write, read, bake, and spend time with her animals. She enjoys being surrounded by family and friends, learning history facts, going for road trips, and listening to all different types of music. She is very thrilled to contribute to The Oakmonitor this year.