Fall 2021 Faculty Guide on Student Mental Health
MCI’s new Fall 2021 Faculty Guide on Student Mental Health provides insightful suggestions for faculty and administrators who may be looking for more resources to support students, foster a greater sense of community and alleviate stress on campus.
This list of suggestions was compiled by experts, including Zoe Ragouzeos, Ph.D., Executive Director of Counseling and Wellness Services at New York University and President of the Mary Christie Institute, as well as those who participated in the webinar event: “The Role of Faculty in Student Mental Health,” that drew insights from a survey report released in April of this year. This guide was also informed by a focus group of nine students from six different universities, interviewed during the summer of 2021.
Mental and Behavioral Health
Main Stories
The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill cancelled classes on Tuesday after a suicide and an attempted suicide were reported this past weekend. In a message to the community, Chancellor Kevin M. Guskiewicz announced that UNC would hold a Wellness Day, encouraging students to check in with one another. “Today, on World Mental Health Day, we are taking a moment to acknowledge and reflect on the seriousness of mental health illness and the challenges we face as we wrestle with the stress and pressures of our world today. We are in the middle of a mental health crisis, both on our campus and across our nation, and we are aware that college-aged students carry an increased risk of suicide. This crisis has directly impacted members of our community – especially with the passing of two students on campus in the past month. As chancellor, a professor and a parent, my heart breaks for all those whose suffering goes unnoticed,” said Guskiewicz.
Other News
Medical News Today reveals research findings on the mental health effects of social media consumption during the pandemic, citing one study that found endless news feeds (like those on most social media sites) reporting COVID infection and death rates could influence mental health.
The University of Washington’s Resilience Lab is aiming to change campus culture towards compassion and mindfulness. The lab advocates for policies that promote resilience, compassion, and inclusion in campus culture.
Diversity, Equity and Inclusion
The Hechinger Report addresses the compounding factors that lead to racial graduation gaps. According to the article, white students are two and a half times more likely to graduate than Black students and 60% more likely to graduate than Latino students at public institutions. Reasons include remedial education, financial challenges, and feeling excluded on campus. Students who had inadequate high school preparation for college must often take remedial classes in math or English before beginning college coursework. However, remedial classes may not count as credits, despite consuming financial aid eligibility, costs, and time.
Diverse Education reports on efforts being made at Tribal Colleges and Universities (TCUs) for indigenous students affected by indigenous deaths and disappearances. In 2016, the Urban Indian Health Institute said there were approximately 6,000 indigenous women reported missing, yet only 116 were listed in the National Missing Persons database. The lack of data reported on these cases may have been influenced by centuries of harmful policies that have strained the relationship between police and Native Americans. Dr. Cheryl Crazy Bull, president and CEO of the American Indian College Fund, emphasizes the importance of TCUs: “TCUs are able to provide mechanisms and access to resources that enable the communities so impacted by loss to take more measures to educate and help themselves.”
The Chronicle covers the benefits of virtual tours, which can attract more first-generation and low-income students to attend college. Through virtual tours and informational sessions, students who would not otherwise be able to afford visiting colleges can address their questions at virtual panels and discussions with other students. Other students reported that due to the pandemic, their college search has been entirely online and would find it helpful to connect with current students as well.
Campus Activism
The Chronicle features an article on the wave of protests that have taken place this fall and how colleges should respond. After a year and a half hiatus, college students are rethinking what they want their campus social environments to embody. Students are increasingly using social media to call out their institutions, rally student peers, and demand immediate action from administrators. Professors specializing in higher education say instead of sending out university-wide emails in response, it may be time for administrators to connect with students on social media. “[T]hink that sending an email to the university saying, ‘This is the progress we made,’ is going to be read by students[?] … [I]nstitutions need to [join] the conversation that students are very much already having on social media,” said Katherine S. Cho, an assistant professor of student affairs in higher education at Miami University of Ohio.
Sexual Assault and Title IX
Inside Higher Ed reports on the sexual assault survivors and advocates who gathered in Washington D.C. on Wednesday to deliver the ED Act Now petition. The petition has been signed by over 50,000 people, demanding that the Department of Education roll back Trump administration policies on how campuses handle sexual misconduct. It calls on Secretary of Education Miguel Cardona and Acting Assistant Secretary of the Office for Civil Rights, Suzanne Goldberg, “to announce proposed changes to the Title IX rule by end of October, to issue a nonenforcement directive on portions of former education secretary Betsy DeVos’s Title IX rule that narrow the scope of those protected by the law and to allow students to file complaints within 180 days from the most recent instance of discrimination instead of from the first instance.”
The Chronicle interviews experts on the correlation between fraternity culture and sexual assault. Sarah McMahon, Director of Rutgers University’s Center on Violence Against Women and Children, says the center’s research shows that men who plan on joining fraternities “already have more rape-supportive attitudes.” McMahon advises colleges to target “subcultures” on campus that may promote sexual aggression. Stevan J. Veldkamp, Executive Director of Pennsylvania State University’s Timothy J. Piazza Center for Fraternity and Sorority Research and Reform, says, “There needs to be a shift to more accountability on not only students, but student organizations like fraternities, some of which have historically created environments that lead to sexual misconduct and violence.”
Student Success
The Hechinger Report examines how colleges and College Scorecard are measuring successful graduation rates within six years, rather than four. According to a nationwide UCLA survey, 90% of entering first-year students say they would graduate in four years, however, only 45% will. The Education Department’s data found that less than two-thirds of college students finish within six years. Colleges and universities may be prolonging the time to complete college by compiling additional requirements, failing to provide enough sections for required courses, offering insufficient advising, and being picky over accepting transfer credits.
Higher Ed Dive shares findings from a new report revealing that median lifetime earnings increase with every additional level of education. Georgetown University’s Center on Education and the Workforce study found that graduates with bachelor’s degrees or higher saw significant growth in their earnings, especially by their 30s. Those without high school diplomas earned $1.2 million over their lifetimes, while workers with bachelor’s degrees earned $2.8 million and $4.7 million for those with professional degrees. The report also reinforces that students’ occupations or majors did have significant impacts on their career earnings.
College Affordability
Higher Ed Dive briefs the U.S. Department of Education’s changes to the Public Service Loan Forgiveness Program, which would make 22,000 borrowers eligible for $1.74 billion in debt forgiveness. Public service workers, such as teachers and nurses, who made on-time payments on student loans for a decade would qualify for federal relief. Additionally, 27,000 borrowers who can prove that they worked for qualifying employers can also qualify for $2.82 billion in student debt forgiveness. While temporary for now, department officials are striving to make permanent changes in the programs by next fall.
Coronavirus: Safety and Reopening
This week’s Live Updates on COVID-19 from Inside Higher Ed reports: the Hawaii governor banning fans at athletic events, changes in COVID-19 policies at several colleges, New Mexico State University firing a professor for refusing to get vaccinated, and students expressing fears related to the pandemic on social media.
The University of Akron, which previously announced a requirement that students and employees be vaccinated by mid-December may now be rescinding that policy. Faculty members at Akron are expressing their fears. The university recently announced that they are in the process of reviewing the policy, stating that at the time it was put in place, vaccination rates were low.
