Democracy Prep seniors describe phone-free ‘digital wellness day’ funded by Half the Story grant

Two seniors from Democracy Prep Endurance High School described a student-led digital-wellness event funded by a Half the Story phone-free grant and said the program aimed to reduce phone distractions and support students’ mental health.

Kaden Grimwoahenni, a senior at Democracy Prep Endurance High School, said the initiative "is a new initiative, a digital wellness initiative that we created at our school" to bring students together for phone-free activities and to foster "real world connection." Ashwin Supur, also a senior, said the students used the grant to purchase materials for a schoolwide "digital wellness day." "We won from half the story right in March and then we use that grant to help us purchase the materials that we needed for the event," Supur said.

The students said the event included activities meant to reduce stress during busy parts of the school year and to promote mental health. They described snack stations and coordinated, phone-free activities intended to unite students across grades. The pair also arranged an EMT station and invited two guest speakers from Balati EMS to demonstrate CPR and discuss emergency-medical-technology careers; they said the demonstrations inspired some students to consider EMT work.

On how students use social media, Grimwoahenni said he does not use mainstream platforms such as Instagram or Snapchat, while Supur said he uses social media in limited ways for relaxation and peer contact. Both said they use digital resources like YouTube for schoolwork; one student described YouTube as a source of tutors and instructional videos that helped with physics and Regents preparation.

The seniors said they are graduating this year and are working with interested juniors so the digital-wellness day can continue as a legacy program at the school. One said he will attend Hunter College in August 2026 and the other will attend U Albany.

The specific dollar amount of the Half the Story award was not stated in the interview. The host closed the segment by directing listeners to Half the Story’s website (halfstory.com) and inviting the students to return to Bronx Net to report on future activity.