Quadcast: Peer Programs in College Student Mental Health, part 2
In the second episode of MCI’s Quadcast series on peer support, executive director Marjorie Malpiede speaks with Dr. Ben Locke, chief clinical director of Togetherall, a digital, clinically moderated peer support network. Dr. Locke was formerly the director of counseling at Penn State University where he was also director of the Center for Collegiate Mental Health. When it comes to a population-level issue like mental health needs, he says, there’s “no single answer.” Yet peer support—in a variety of forms—may work alongside traditional services to be part of the solution.
The episode concludes with a conversation between Malpiede and Dr. Zoe Ragouzeous, the clinical director at MCI and head of counseling at New York University, who respond to some of Dr. Locke’s comments.
Mental and Behavioral Health
Main Stories
Last week, The Washington Post published an expose on the withdrawal policies that leave Yale students who struggle with their mental health feeling trapped, sometimes fatally so. In response to the article, The Post reports, Yale president Peter Salovey addressed the alumni community, suggesting that the article poorly reflected the university’s mental health efforts and value for student wellness. Separately, Paul Hoffman, the director of Mental Health & Counseling for Yale Health, and Pericles Lewis, the dean of Yale College, also co-authored a letter to the editor at The Post, expressing their disappointment in the article for insinuating that students with mental health challenges fare better on campus than they would seeking treatment elsewhere.
Other News
For The Washington Post, clinical psychologist Jenny Taitz offers tips to parents of teens who may be struggling with their mental health, encouraging them to focus on being non judgemental and ask difficult questions about suicidality.
The New York Times covers the deals university athletic departments are making with sports-betting companies, provoking concerns around exposing students to possible gambling disorders.
The Associated Press explores efforts from the University of Virginia to support the mental health of student athletes after three players on the football team were shot and killed on campus last week.
With The Harvard Gazette, ten Harvard undergraduates share what mental health stressors they’ve been dealing with, from social media to the pressure to succeed, and how they cope.
In The Conversation, Tom Metherell, a PhD candidate at the University College Longdon, writes about his recent research endeavor, revealing that young people without access to a computer during the pandemic struggled more with their mental health.
Diversity, Equity and Inclusion
The Chronicle explores the evolution of media coverage of historically Black colleges and universities (HBCUs), from focusing on their financial struggles and little else to praising the cultural and economic opportunities they create. The shift, The Chronicle proposes, may have helped set off a chain reaction, bringing in a new wave of high profile donations and expanding enrollment.
Over the past week, multiple top law schools in the country, including Harvard, Yale, and Stanford, announced they will no longer be submitting data for the U.S. News & World Report rankings. According to The New York Times, the universities take issue with how the rankings reward measures like test scores and employment in a way that devalues public service careers. Efforts to expand access and equity in law schools are also behind the recent decision to do away with standardized testing for admission. For undergraduates, the trend away from mandated testing has also led to significant change this year, as Higher Ed Dive reveals only 48% of applicants submitted test scores as of November 1st, compared to almost 80% for the 2019-20 year.
Student Buzz
The Yale Daily News considers its administration’s response to The Washington Post story on withdrawal policies, providing new insight from the college dean and members of the alumni advocacy group Elis for Rachael.
The Harvard Crimson reviews the variety of peer support services on campus, from interpersonal psychotherapy to LGBTQ+ counseling, suggesting that student interest is promising.
The Crimson also reports that Massachusetts Superior Court judge ruled this week to proceed with a 2018 lawsuit against Harvard, accused of negligence in the death of a student, Luke Zhang, by suicide in 2015.
A feature in The Tufts Daily probes the impact of the pandemic on the state of student mental health at the university, as well as the professional and peer services it offers.
In an op-ed for The Daily Princetonian, one student writer takes issue with the university president Christopher Eisgruber’s stance that a culture of intense academic rigor is compatible with mental wellness or even intellectual growth.
The Daily Trojan discusses the implications of one University of Southern California student’s new short film, “The Undergraduate,” which captures the reality, including mental health challenges, rather than the fantasy of college student life.
Sexual Assault & Title IX
According to Higher Ed Dive, President Biden is now in a position to usher in the Speak Out Act, which would void nondisclosure agreements formerly made in the event of workplace sexual assault or harassment, after The House passed it last week. Biden’s approval seems probable given the letter of support for the act which came out of the White House earlier this month.
Although Title IX has technically protected pregnant and parenting students for 50 years, The Chronicle suggests that the specification of those rules in the Biden administration’s proposed updates is stirring up some controversy. While many experts anticipate that the changes would facilitate the college process for pregnant or parenting students, others worry how mandated record keeping could spell trouble for students and institutions in states where abortion access is restricted.
Student Success
Media buzz reflects national concern surrounding the value of higher education. Higher Ed Dive reviews a recent survey which suggests that recent graduates often don’t find their degrees prepared them for the workforce. Commentary from The Atlantic questions the pervasive narrative, in reality and on television, that college after high school is the only way forward. And for WBUR and Inside Higher Ed, two mothers explore why not attending college or attending community college instead of a traditional four-year program was ultimately the best option for their sons and their unique needs.
College Affordability
According to The Washington Post, President Biden is not backing down on his student debt relief plan, now turning to the Supreme Court for help overturning the U.S Court of Appeals ruling that blocked his program last week. In the meantime, The Post reveals the Biden administration is priming another route to debt relief, revisiting a historically controversial policy that allows borrowers to discharge student debt through bankruptcy.
The other focus of The Washington Post’s student debt coverage this week is the financial future of those defrauded by their colleges. A federal judge recently approved a $6 billion dollar settlement, The Post reports, to cancel the debt of approximately 200,000 such borrowers. Yet how soon these borrowers can expect to see relief is uncertain, given that The Post finds some of those promised canceled loans and credit repair in other fraud suits “are still waiting months later.”
Basic Needs
The Los Angeles Times continues its coverage of how the housing shortage in California is affecting college students across the state. This week, the LA Times podcast dedicated to the state housing crisis, “Gimme Shelter,” features a third-year student at UC Santa Cruz, who lives in a trailer to evade unaffordable rent costs. He’s not alone in this particular struggle, he says.
Campus Safety
The recent shooting at the University of Virginia that resulted in the death of three students has provoked questions across the media about the impact of risk assessment and prevention on college campuses. After a classmate suggested he owned a gun, the suspect in the shooting, another student, came onto the university’s radar earlier this year. Noting that UVA previously instituted a threat assessment team to try to disrupt potential tragedies, The New York Times, The Washington Post, and The Chronicle consider whether the UVA system is flawed or broke down in this instance. Then, The Chronicle also explores one of the complications when it comes to warning a community against possible violence on campus: laws protecting student privacy.
