10th Annual Wellness Together Conference

Join us for a dynamic 12-minute Lighthouse Talk, designed to showcase bold ideas, innovative practices, and inspiring stories shaping the future of student mental health and wellness. This presentation is one of four featured during this one-hour block. Due to the fast-paced format, there will be no formal Q&A, but we encourage you to connect with the speaker directly after the block to continue the conversation.

Generative AI presents a profound challenge to youth mental wellness by tempting students to short-circuit their learning process, subvert their unique voices, and disconnect from their educational communities. To address this urgent issue, this presentation offers an actionable framework grounded in Transformational Leadership and Design Thinking that teaches students how to ethically engage with technology while bringing their authentic selves to their work. Rather than fighting digital trends, attendees will learn how to leverage empathy to understand the underlying pressures driving students toward academic shortcuts, and use innovation to foster safe risk-taking and collaborative problem-solving. The core of this highly interactive session centers on the "AI Sandwich" method—a practical, easily replicable strategy for healthy tech engagement. Participants will discover how to guide students to establish their own ideas and drafts first to build honesty and authenticity (the "Top Bun"), utilize AI strictly as a collaborative brainstorming and refining partner (the "Filling"), and conduct the final edits to retain ultimate ownership and accountability (the "Bottom Bun"). By shifting the focus from digital reliance back to human connection, this evidence-based approach equips educators and clinicians with the immediate tools needed to protect academic integrity, alleviate performance anxiety, and empower the next generation of confident, authentic learners and leaders.