Groups hosting 'Paper Tigers'

By MARY MALONE

Staff writer

SANDPOINT — Truancy, behavioral issues and substance abuse are some of the signs of troubled and at-risk teens.

The movie "Paper Tigers" takes a look at these issues and how the principal of Lincoln High School in Walla Walla, Wash., radically changed the school's approach to discipline. A free screening of the movie will be shown at 6 p.m. Sept. 21 at Sandpoint High School, sponsored by Lake Pend Oreille School District and North Idaho Children's Mental Health.

Jenny Brotherton-Manna, owner of NICMH, said she is on a children's mental health sub-committee for Region 1. She said the Coeur d'Alene School District was "thrilled" following a screening of the movie last year and "attendance was good." The second film in the series is "Resilience," she said, which screened at the Panida Theater in Sandpoint on April 11.

"These movies are about how trauma impacts lives," Brotherton-Manna said in an email to the Daily Bee. "The reason we show these are because the ACE's study indicates we need to pay attention to trauma in kids and how that trauma affects all areas of their lives. When we know what kids have suffered, we can start to reverse the effects of it."

ACE's stands for adverse childhood experiences and it describes a 10-question format that asks people to answer questions about negative experiences they have had in childhood, Brotherton-Manna said. The original study was done by the CDC and Kaiser Permanente and it is the largest investigation of childhood abuse and neglect and the correlation to that in later-life health and well-being. This study continues today, she said.

The film at the Panida was the first on this topic, Brotherton-Manna said.

"It was hard to follow the movie with a discussion, so I wanted a more open room to make sure we have a community discussion after the film," she said. 

For that reason, Brotherton-Manna said the film will be shown at Sandpoint High School. A panel of community members will be available, but she said they would also like participation from the audience in the discussion.

The movie's main audience is young teen and adults, Brotherton-Manna said, because very young children will not understand the topic.

Mary Malone can be reached by email @mmalone@bonnercountydailybee.com and follow her on Twitter @MaryDailyBee.