Suicide Raises Stress Concerns

Madison Holleran, a 19-year-old track star and a freshman at the University of Pennsylvania, shocked friends and family by jumping from a parking garage to commit suicide on Jan. 17. Nationally, her death has brought attention to the issue of teenage academic stress.

In the Epoch Times, her father James Holleran said that she was "the happiest girl on the planet" prior to attending the Ivy League school. Amid doing track-and-field at UPenn, she was planning to major in philosophy, politics, and economics. However, Holleran began to succumb to stress and anxiety as she tried to juggle track and her 3.5 GPA during her first semester.

"We knew she needed help," said James Holleran in an interview with the New York Post, referring to his daughter's visit over Christmas break.

"She had lost confidence in academics and she also lost confidence in her track abilities," he continued.

Holleran's sudden death not only shocked her school and community, but it has also impacted many individuals across the nation by raising questions about the rigors and stress of academics that students face today.

According to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), more people now die of suicide than they do from motor vehicle accidents; in 2009, the CDC reported that 17.4% of female high school students and 10.5% of male high school students considered suicide in the past year. In 2013, the American Psychological Association (APA) found that 45% of high school students reported stress caused by school pressures. This academic stress can be a correlating factor in suicide.

"It is definitely heartbreaking to hear that a promising, young student who had so much to offer is now gone," shared Professor Marcy Calnan, an AP Psychology teacher at Valencia High School, in an interview with JSR. "It's also very sad that so many students are suffering from the stress of their workloads and have difficulty maintaining their physical and mental states."

According to Kiana Schaubel, a senior at Canyon High School, "society needs to examine the pressures that young people are put under and the effects those pressures can have on young people's mental health."

Schaubel, who shared that she has also personally dealt with the stress of maintaining good grades while remaining active in extracurricular activities, stated, "The death of Madison Holleran is... very concerning for our society."

Angela Kim ·Grade 11, Valencia High School