Philly schools are starting a new therapeutic program for students -- featuring horses and donkeys

PHILADELPHIA — Michael Castillo struggles with his emotions sometimes. But the seventh grader at Morrison Elementary in Olney has learned a lot — from donkeys and horses.

When Michael first came to Fox Chase Farm for a pilot program helping students learn social and emotional skills, he was scared, he said. He thought the animals might bite or kick him.

"But that's only if you trigger their stuff, their moments," Michael said. "You have to stay right next to them. When they run away, they don't want to be pet and they don't want to be touched. It gives you patience; you have to let them come to you."

Cheered by the success of the pilot, the Philadelphia School District is expanding the program to 12 schools this academic year — Morrison, Harding Middle School in Frankford, Hancock Elementary in the Northeast, Hunter in North Philadelphia, Sharswood in South Philadelphia, and Roosevelt Elementary in Germantown this fall, and six to-be-determined schools in the spring. Each school sends eight to 10 children for sessions twice a week.

The Equine-Assisted Social Emotional Learning Support program gives students with disabilities — and some of their nondisabled peers — the ability to help "manage their emotions, build resilience, and develop critical thinking skills," said Mandy Manna, who manages Fox Chase Farm, a district property that works with students from schools around the city.

'I wish we could have animals'

It will cost about $108,000 to run this school year; foundations are footing the bill.

The program came from an idea Meredith Lowe, Morrison's principal, had in 2019. Lowe, who is a member of the Neubauer Family Foundation's Academy of School Leaders, was in a Neubauer small group talking about students' experience with trauma and mental health.

Lowe described running down the street after an eighth grader in a Morrison emotional support class who got overwhelmed and fled the building.

"She said, 'I wish we could have animals like goats in the school to help the kids,'" said Melissa Anderson, a clinical psychologist and trustee of the Neubauer Family Foundation.

Goats in the classroom weren't practical, but Lowe and Kristen DeMarco, executive director of Gateway HorseWorks, a Malvern-based nonprofit that incorporates horses into mental health treatment, worked together to develop the program that was celebrated at Fox Chase Farm on Wednesday.

The results have been impressive: 100% of the students who participated had improved attendance; 90% continued attendance gains after the program. Participating students had fewer instances of mental health referrals, received fewer suspensions, and were able to spend more time in general education classes.

"As a school leader, the impact that this actually has in the building is tremendous," said Lowe. "We have kids that are talking about physical safety, and emotional safety, and boundaries and respect."

Students' mental health needs have increased dramatically since the pandemic; 1 in 6 U.S. youth are affected by mental health conditions, said Meghan Smith, the district's interim deputy chief of prevention and intervention.

"We're very excited about this initiative, as we are always looking for innovative ways to meet the social-emotional and behavioral health needs of our students," Smith said; programs like this one provide a vulnerable student population with the ability to learn and practice skills that serve them in the classroom and beyond.

"We are very excited about this partnership," Smith said. "We look forward to continued growth."

'This is so much more powerful'

After the adults talked, Michael and his classmate Jake Em Christian gave a demonstration of how the program works, walking with Philadelphia Superintendent Tony B. Watlington Sr. into a donkey pen.

Ellen and Naomi, two soft, brown donkeys, eyed the trio warily. DeMarco reminded Jake and Michael to check in with the donkeys.

"Physical safety and emotional safety have to be in place before we have trust," DeMarco said.

But Jake and Michael were pros; they were quiet and gentle. No one taught them how to handle horses or donkeys, DeMarco said.

"This model believes that our clients have solutions if we give them the space to develop them," she said.

One of the donkeys retreated to a corner of her pen and fetched a brush used to comb her fur and held it in her mouth.

"They're kind of scared," said Jake.

"Too many people," said Michael. "When you feel mad or sad, you just walk away."

Watlington nodded.

"It's not that they don't like me; they're just not ready yet," Watlington said. As a former teacher, he imagined Ellen and Naomi's behavior might mimic a student who lashed out when it was time to have a tough conversation. "It may very well not be defiance, it's just that the student is not ready to talk."

Eventually, the donkey-whisperers, including the superintendent, won over Ellen and Naomi, who enjoyed ear and flank scratches and tolerated standing close to the trio.

"This is so much more powerful than anything I could tell them," DeMarco said. "They knew what they needed to do."