• A Charles Sturt student has been appointed as a National Youth Advisor for Womn-Kind
• The Bachelor of Education (K-12) student is hoping to use her position to assist other women at university improve their mental health
• A social work academic praised the student for having a positive impact on the university community

It was Charles Sturt University student’s Ms Bronte Johnson’s own struggles with mental health in high school that prompted her to reach out to get help.

She has now changed her involvement with mental health organisation Womn-Kind from participant to Youth Advisor, focusing on helping other young women improve their mental health.

Ms Johnson (pictured) is currently studying a Bachelor of Education (K-12) at Charles Sturt in Albury-Wodonga.

She grew up in Cootamundra and took a ‘gap’ year after graduating from high school. She was a nanny to four children under eight years old on a cattle station in Queensland, where they spent most of their time mustering cattle, fishing, baking or feeding poddy calves.

Located on the property was a small school, attended by 11 children from Prep to Year 6, and Ms Johnson was impressed with the respect between students and teachers. It became the driving force behind her decision to study teaching.

At the beginning of Year 11, Ms Johnson’s best friend was diagnosed with cancer.

“With the stress of my senior years and the unknown of such a devastating diagnosis, I was left feeling lost and confused,” she said.

“I found it challenging to regulate and express my emotions. Then I found Womn-Kind.”

Ms Johnson accessed the support offered by Womn-Kind, a youth mental health organisation providing resources to teenage girls.

Ms Johnson said receiving support at home through the app helped her process her emotions through many stages of growing up.

After three years of using Womn-Kind’s resources, Ms Johnson saw an advertisement to become a Youth Advisor.

Ms Johnson was successful and is now one of six Womn-Kind Youth Advisors who meet weekly with the organisation’s CEO to generate ideas and strategies on how to help other girls in their communities.

“My biggest motivator as a Youth Advisor at Womn-Kind is to reduce the burden and stigma around asking for help,” she said.

“Asking for support does not make you weak, it takes such strength of an individual to recognise that they aren’t okay and then advocate for their wellbeing and mental health.

Ms Johnson is hoping to learn the skills she has acquired as a Youth Advisor to help her fellow university students in managing and improving their mental health.

“University is hard enough with the workload, studying and attending lectures and tutorials, so making sure that our mental health is a number one priority ensures that we can be our happiest and do our best,” she said.

She wants classmates who are struggling with their mental health, need study tips, who want to improve their sleep health, learn how to navigate friendships or peer pressure to utilise Womn-Kind’s resources.

Ms Johnson is hoping to have the founder of Womn-Kind facilitate in-person wellbeing workshops on campus.  

Senior Lecturer in Social Work in the Charles Sturt School of Social Work and Arts in Wagga Wagga Dr Bernadette Moorhead praised Ms Johnson for recognising when she needed help and for reaching out.

“Her commitment to giving back to the community and making a difference in others' lives through her work as a National Youth Advisor reflects the kind of social support and advocacy we need in Australia to reduce stigma related to mental health,” she said.

Dr Moorhead said through the Bachelor of Social Work and its other undergraduate and postgraduate offerings, the University is ensuring it develops capable and empathetic professionals.

“Bronte's call for other young people to reach out for help are echoed by professionals in mental health, especially social workers, who are employed in a range of roles, such as counselling, case management and advocacy,” she said.

“At Charles Sturt University, our social work programs (Bachelor and Masters) prepare students to emerge with the skills, knowledge and values to support individuals and families, as well as reduce societal stigma around mental health experiences.”