3/21 – 3/27

Mental and Behavioral Health

After four students died by suicide in the 2013-2014 academic year, University of Pennsylvania’s Counseling and Psychological Services launched I CARE – a training program to help peers and advisers better understand mental health and help each other. Since then, the program has expanded its reach to target specific student groups and to train members of the faculty and staff. About 2,500 people have been trained since April 2014, 436 so far this academic year.

University of Minnesota freshman Elizabeth Flores is spearheading a mental health photo campaign in response to rising rates of mental illness on college campuses. The campaign, which features six students and their stories, also focuses on the University’s increasing number of mental health resources. “We were really trying to get personal experiences within campus, people that you might see in class,” Flores said. “At the end of the day, everyone has had stress at some level, and we thought it was important to demonstrate that.”

In the University of Colorado student newspaper the CU Independent, student Alex Segell argues that mental health services are a vital resource that the school has not addressed seriously enough. Segell writes that students don’t believe the services offered at CAPS are comprehensive enough to meet the mental health demands of students. One CU Boulder senior who spoke on the condition of anonymity told Segell, “I had a great session, but I ended up seeking help elsewhere. While they were helpful, I felt like I was in and out really quickly because they just kind of placed me into a category and sent me on my way. It made me feel hesitant to go in and get help again.”

The University of Pennsylvania Positive Psychology Center sponsored a “teach-in event” called “The Knowledge and Practice of Well-Being”. Speakers discussed how to address common stressors in college with practices of well-being and mindfulness, and led interactive activities and thought experiments to spur participation from attendees.

During Utah State University’s Mental Health Week, students flocked to a booth in the student center to get their photo taken, and post it on the wall alongside a word describing what gives them hope. Students wrote things like “Sunshine,” “people who listen,” “music” and “God’s plan” USU student Mollie Embody said of the activity,  “I think it’d be a beneficial idea to find hope in something and see what other people hope for to help me overcome my depression. It’s been a big part of my life recently. It’s been really hard.”

In a letter to the editor of the Daily Tar Heel, freshman Maddie Creatore argued that the University of North Carolina Chapel Hill has failed to fully accommodate students with mental health issues and effectively prevent these obstacles for others. Creatore wrote that “Counseling and Psychological Services neglects students struggling with long-term mental disorders. They tend to refer these students to outside providers, which is costly and inconvenient.”

Arizona State University has partnered with an online therapy service, TAO Connect, to bring a  digital therapy program to campus. TAO, which stands for Therapy Assistance Online, provides online modules, exercises, journals and HIPAA compliant video conferences.

The Rhode Island state Senate has approved legislation that would require the Community College of Rhode Island, Rhode Island College and the University of Rhode Island to establish plans to address “the mental health needs” of their students “in a timely fashion.” The bill would allow schools to develop partnerships with community mental-health providers, but “sole reliance on off-campus mental health services is strongly discouraged.”

Texas State University freshman Jaden Edison reported on the problem of the high prevalence of mental health issues among student athletes, who are under increased stress due to their dual roles on college campuses.

The University of Mississippi chapter of Active Minds is holding its second annual Mental Health Week to create a conversation and generate awareness about mental health on campus. On Monday, the group hosted Send Silence Packing, which included a powerful display of empty backpacks laid out across the Grove to represent the number of students lost to suicide.

Texas A&M held its HelpLine Awareness Week to promote the volunteer-based call center and raise awareness of its services. The HelpLine is a resource for the community that provides a listening ear to callers outside of the normal student counseling services business hours. The staff is predominately volunteers of undergraduate, graduate and former students of A&M who are supervised by the professional staff of the student counseling services.

The University of Tennessee’s Bachelor’s Social Work Organization (BSWO) is holding an event, Glow Up for Mental Health, to advocate for mental health awareness and shed light on available resources. The event will feature different mental health agencies, including Helen Ross McNabb, Tennessee Suicide Prevention Network (TSPN) and Mental Health Association of East Tennessee, who will provide information about local mental health resources. A guest speaker from the Tennessee Suicide Prevention Network will talk about the importance of suicide prevention and mental health awareness.

The University of Pennsylvania Undergraduate Assembly administered a survey to undergraduate students to gauge interest for specific mental health initiatives, including the location of CAPS, the presence of student-led mental health groups, and the possibility of walk-in CAPS sessions embedded in buildings on campus. The UA survey is led by students and geared towards student awareness of resources, rather than administrative review of campus culture. Modern Healthcare reports on the problem of growing demand for behavioral health services on college campuses, and the innovative solutions some colleges and universities have undertaken to address it.

Diversity and Inclusion

Last week, eight University of Minnesota undergraduate and graduate student representatives presented top student concerns to the Board of Regents, including diversity efforts and disability services.

Leadership Enterprise for a Diverse America, a nonprofit advising program, helps students from low-income families apply to college. The program is selective; only about 8 percent of students who apply are accepted for an annual class of 100 scholars. The program provides free college advising, classes in writing and leadership development, campus tours, and a seven-week summer conference on the campus of Princeton University, which makes the college search process quite atypical. Iris Early, director of recruitment and admission for Leadership Enterprise, said of the program, “We are looking for achievement, grit and persistence. We’re not looking for surface-level involvement. We want to really see that you believe in something, care about something and are committed to it.” This year, fifteen of the program’s students applied to Stanford for early admission to the class entering in 2018, with 14 accepted for admission.

The Harvard University Undergraduate Council voted last week to allocate $3,000 for bicycles and other means of transportation for some low-income students on campus. The legislation subsidizes the purchase of bicycles, scooters, and skateboards by undergraduate students. To qualify, students must be eligible for the Student Events Fund, an initiative that provides event tickets to undergraduates with demonstrated financial need. Currently, about 25 to 30 percent of undergraduates are SEF-eligible.

Sexual Assault and Title IX

A former Michigan State University dean-and the former supervisor to the serial sexual abuser Larry Nassar-is now facing his own set of sexual-harassment accusations. William Strampel, who served as dean of the university’s College of Osteopathic Medicine until December 2017, was arrested Monday night on four charges including criminal sexual conduct and willful neglect of duty. Strampel is accused of sexually harassed four MSU students, and using his position to intimidate them. The willful-neglect counts concern whether Strampel sufficiently monitored Nassar after he had been investigated by the university for allegedly molesting a female athlete. The new revelations help explain how sexual harassment can fester at higher-education institutions like MSU, and suggest that a culture of misconduct runs deeper than just the former sports doctor.

Substance Use

Collegiate Recovery Programs are increasingly popular on college campuses. In a student- led initiative, the College of William & Mary has started a recovery program which seeks to offer a safe space and a community of support for students in recovery – while also reducing the stigma of addiction on campus. The idea of a campus-based recovery group at William & Mary has long been discussed, and came to fruition this year when Alex Hilert, a doctoral student in clinical mental health & addictions counseling at the W&M School of Education, took the lead.

Student Safety

In a decision that experts say could have nationwide significance, the California Supreme Court ruled last week that public colleges and universities have a duty to “protect students from foreseeable violence during curricular activities.” The ruling dealt with the case of Katherine Rosen, a student who was stabbed in the neck and chest by another student nearly nine years ago at the University of California at Los Angeles. The attacker, Damon Thompson, was known to college officials as having experienced delusions and threatened violence against other students, according to the court’s summary of the events. UCLA maintained it could not have been expected to know what Thompson would do that day. It argued in court that this ruling could dissuade colleges from offering mental health services because they would be more likely to expel students who might pose a threat rather than try to help them. Benjamin C. Zipursky, a law professor at Fordham University, has been following the case, and spoke to The Chronicle about its significance for California’s universities and, possibly, for universities in other states.

College Affordability

A new tool jointly created by the University of Texas System and the U.S. Census Bureau allows students at Texas colleges to compare majors to get an idea of what they might earn as income one, five, or 10 years after graduation, no matter where they live and work. They can also see how much they’re likely to owe, how many years it typically takes to earn a degree, and what percentage of students in that field pursue graduate degrees.