Rancho Cotate Confessions Page Offers Glimpse into Private World of Local Teens

Fitting in, pressure to drink and do drugs, finding friends all while balancing academic work make high school a trying time for many teens.

A generation ago, teens poured out their angst in diaries: the boy and girl troubles, conflicts with parents and worries about their place in the world.

Now there’s Facebook, where confession pages have become de rigueur.

One of these is Rancho Cotate High School Confessions, created last month by a 17-year-old junior at the school and that offers a glimpse into what’s on the mind of some of the 1,500 students who go there.

The page is a troubling catalog of stories of drugs on campus (pot brownies and vodka soaked gummy bears being just a couple of examples), teens who feel isolated and insecure, and harrowing stories of abuse, like the girl who says she was gang raped at a party.

The boy who started it and wants to keep a low profile, but says he created the page to give his classmates a space where they could express their feelings to their peers without being judged.

“I know there's a lot of drama and problems at my school, so I created the page in hopes of helping some people emotionally,” says Eric, who declined to be interviewed by Patch, but exchanged several emails with us. 

“The thing that has surprised me the most is the amount of depression and sadness there is at our school,” Eric says.

Users enter their “confessions” via a Survey Monkey link, which allows them to ask a question without being identified. Eric then reviews the question and posts it on the Facebook page, giving other users a chance to respond.

Here’s a sample:

“There's this boy at our school that harasses not only me, but my school mates too. Everyone that doesn't really know him thinks he's such a nice guy, and wants to be his friend, and I just wish they all saw him for who he really was. A two-faced, backstabbing, piece of sh-- who thinks he's better than everyone else. I've tried (along with other people from our school) to get the school to do something about his harassing, but they just keep letting it go. I hate him so much and I just want him gone.”

And another, admitting to bad behavior and then expressing remorse.

“I once sexually harassed a girl. She doesn't talk about it and neither do I, but I feel like total sh-- about it but I can't build up the nerve to talk to her about it. I hope she's OK. I don't know what got into me.”

Numerous calls and emails to school principal Robert Steffen, district superintendent Robert Haley and counselors were not returned. But according to the district’s website, the school has three counselors, although it’s not clear whether they are psychologists or more career-oriented guidance counselors. Regardless, many parents say that number—500 students per counselor— is abysmally low.

Rancho does offer a program called Project Success, where students and parents can get help with substance abuse issues, anger management, school stress and other issues, but it's not clear how many students utilize the service.

A message left for Cynthia Morfin, who heads Project Success at the school was not returned.

Lena Kibble, a therapist with practices in Rohnert Park and Napa, says the RCHS Confessions page can be a good first step for teens struggling with depression.

But it’s not enough.

“The good news is that there is a forum for their problems, but the hope is that they take that next step and get help,” Kibble said. “Half the battle is for teens to know that there are services available to them and to access them.”

Eric says he's been stunned by some of the confessions on his page.

“I always knew it wasn't the greatest of places, but I never knew people here felt like this," he told Patch. "It's kind of eye opening to see how people’s behavior can effect someone so much, and I hope people are realizing that now and being more considerate of others.”

In Sonoma County, there are several options available for teens in crisis, including numerous free or sliding scale providers. See below for a list of community resources. For a complete list of resources, see the attached PDF on the right.

Project Success, which has a coordinator at Rancho Cotate, offers access to counselors for both parents and students and is run by SOS Counseling.

California Parenting Institute in Santa Rosa offers counseling and workshops for parents and teens. 707-565-6900 or 1-800-746-8181.

Sonoma County Adult and Youth Development 707-793-9030

SOS Counseling in Petaluma 707-772-5085

Sonoma County Mental Health hotline 1-800-746-8181

Have you seen Rancho Cotate Confessions? What's your take?