YANA (You Are Not Alone) Vee Team Connect

 

Visit the YANA School Tour

We are looking for sponsors for the YANA school program/Tours for the school year 2023-2024! IF you are interested in your company being a sponsor of this kindness movement, please contact us at jessiivee@outlook.com for the sponsorship packages. 

   

Angie Chen
Interested in more Yana Group information or if you have a question? Please email us at yana@jessiivee.com
Hello everyone! My name is Angie Chen and I am the YANA Social Media Administrator. I’ve just graduated from the University of Waterloo with a Research Intensive Specialization Psychology degree. I am passionate about mental health, mainly in the child and adolescent demographics. Feel free to reach out to me via our YANA social media pages (links below) if you have any questions about YANA!!
Remember to check out YANA’s social media!

FAQs

YANA is a nonprofit program that was created by the Canadian online content creator Jessii Vee, who is using it as an opportunity to give back to the community. Spreading kindness, stopping bullying, discouraging hate, and creating safe spaces for children at school are just a few of the goals of the YANA (You Are Not Alone) program. This movement focuses on inclusivity and reaching out to those who feel alone.

Click here to see Jessii talk about YANA in the press

Since the group should be mainly led by students themselves, advisors’ commitment times are flexible and should be there just to assure the students that school is supporting them if they do need help to meet their goals in a safe productive manner. We have seen some YANA groups in schools meet once a week and some meet daily. It is really up to each group/school as to how much time is needed.

A school official is needed to support students and ensure their goals are achieved in a safe productive manner. In addition to that, advisors will need to make sure the group members meet the requirements. (Please read below for more details)
*Please note: We have added an optional but highly recommended to fill out section in the application form for a Student Team Leader. This student will be the primary YANA contact when the assigned school official is busy or otherwise unavailable. Our hope for this change is to increase communication and collaboration with all of our YANA groups while decreasing the workload for school staff.

Since this group will be run by students, we advise that these students need to be positive people who are willing to include and help their peers. For example, a student with a history of bullying should not be leading a YANA group. These students should have positive impacts on one another and work together to achieve their goals. Hence, the supervisors should be very specific in whom they choose as a member of this group. Audition is not required.

The Vee Team Connect created YANA to make sure all students feel included at school. When you are officially registered with Jessii Vee's YANA group, we will be sending out a YANA package for your members that include things like pens, bracelets, posters etc. When your school has received the packages, Jessii Vee will give your school a shoutout in one of her videos. Officially registering with us will include your school into an entry for Jessii to visiting your school in person or zoom. Your organization would not need to pay us any compensations, as we are just trying to motivate students to be more inclusive at school. We just want to give back to the community. Having a family friendly content creator speak about all of these important topics can really persuade students into sharing positivity with others. Her "Important lessons series" on YouTube has been shown in schools around the world for education purposes.

The application form can be downloaded from here: https://jessiivee.com/pages/yana
OR
Feel free to reach us through email: yana@jessiivee.com

Put up inspiring quotes on classroom walls and hallways
Make “goodie bags” for teachers and other students
Team up with teachers from other departments
o e.i. History: Learn about Inclusivity
o e.i. Art: Create YANA t-shirts or accessories. Make own positive posters
Make a conscious effort to give out compliments
Write and send out kind messages to others
Talk to a peer that needs a friend
YANA group members can walk up to students who were sitting alone during lunch/break time. This way, they are less likely to be targeted by bullies, as they have a safe space to go to.
Help out in the community
Bring awareness to your school community about any injustice in your school, such as bullying, cyber-bullying, racism or hate of any kind
So many more….contact us at yana@jessiivee.com for more ideas

YANA team

I am Felicia Nofuente, an elementary school counselor at Betz Elementary School and I am in my third year as a YANA supervising teacher. It has been a rewarding experience to see how our students interpret the YANA mission and translate it to activities in our building.  At the elementary school level, I was curious to see how our students were going to share YANA with the entire school. In my first year, we started with 4 students who wanted to go into classrooms to teach kindness lessons and it has grown into a movement of 15 students facilitating community projects, kindness week, and school-wide challenges in hopes of creating a safe and positive school climate. Each year our students find creative ways to spread kindness and inclusivity in our schools. The YANA team would meet about once a month during lunch to brainstorm ideas based on the mission of our YANA team. As the supervising teacher, I communicate with JessiiVee’s YANA Team about our different activities and make sure they align with the YANA mission. It has been a wonderful experience to work with the YANA team that helps create a safe and inclusive space for students to express themselves and spread kindness at Betz Elementary School.

Felecia Nofuente YANA supervising teacher

Created by Jessii Vee, YANA Stands for: You are not alone!
Use this group to make connections with others sharing similar struggles. Spread positivity!

A few years ago, the concept of YANA groups in schools was discussed and created by a group of women called “Beautifully Blessed.” This group was founded, and lead by Niki Vee, Jessii Vee’s mom. What the group wanted to accomplish was to prevent loneliness and isolation for kids in schools. Jessii was a part of this group and she wanted to use her platform to support and spread this idea. She felt very passionate about this movement as she herself had a difficult time in school fitting in. She has always taken the time to tell her YouTube following to “Embrace their weird side because normal is boring.” She wanted kids to feel empowered because of their differences not embarrassed or ashamed.

So “YANA Vee Team Connect” groups were born! Jessii would like to see these groups in every school around the world. Her goal is to start a movement where schools/programs form groups that reach out to kids who are alone and having problems fitting in.

The goals of these groups are to spread kindness, be inclusive, reach out to those who are alone, prevent bullying, discourage hate, encourage justice/peace and spread love to everyone despite their differences. These YANA groups should be supervised by a school official and inspire kids who want to make a difference in the lives of others, to sign up and spread kindness and inclusiveness! Most groups in schools choose the smartest, strongest, most athletic, or talented students for their groups. Not for Vee Team Connect YANA Groups! Any member of YANA groups should be kind, caring, selfless and encouraging. They should NOT be rude, condescending, unkind or part of groups who do not include others. The supervising teachers/instructors should be very specific in who they choose to be members of this important group.

If your school or program would like to be part of the Vee Team Connect YANA Group, please download the YANA Group Information Sheet & Application, and have a school or program official complete the form. Once complete, the form should be emailed to yana@jessiivee.com.

YANA Registered Schools

Mackinaw Trail Middle School

James Hogg Middle School

Warder Elementary

Desert Hills Elementary

Ross Street School #11

Wasuma Elementary School

Skyridge Middle School

Noxville Academy

College of Adaptive Arts

Betz Elementary School

Perry Junior High

Nocona Middle School

Father Patrick Mercredi High School

Stem Academy

Salida High School

Alma Brewer Strawn Elementary School

Richardson Olmsted Elementary School

Riverfield Country Day School

Western Heights 9th grade center

North Saginaw Charter Academy

Ripley Middle School

Mace's Lane Middle School

Ripley Union Lewis Huntington Elementary School

Bloomfield Elementary

Foothill Elementary

Main Street Intermediate School

Copenhagen International School

Lasalle Secondary School

Bedford Village Elementary School

Rangeley Lakes Regional School

YANA Group Event Photos