From How They Feel to Who They Are: Exploring the Emotional Wellbeing of Student Activists
The Fall 2021 Quarterly’s peer-reviewed section, Innovations in Behavioral Healthcare, features an article by Samantha Smith, MPH, CHES, the Associate Director for Health Promotion at University of Maryland Baltimore County, where she describes her current research examining the relationship between student activism and emotional wellbeing. Smith explores the possible ways in which student activism connects to student health, both positively and negatively.
“While actions such as activism are vital to addressing social justice issues and can lead to internal and social benefits for participants, the effects on one’s emotional wellbeing are largely unknown but could be significant.”
Mental and Behavioral Health
Main Stories
The Center for Psychiatric Rehabilitation at Boston University’s Sargent College is offering a free, comprehensive educational program for the parents and caregivers of young adults who live with mental health conditions. The Flourishing Families workshop is a 5-week program that includes workshops on parent and caregiver coaching, healthy relationships, and community conversations. Boston-based workshops are held on Tuesdays at 7:00 to 9:00pm at the Center for Psychiatric Rehabilitation at 940 Commonwealth Ave., Boston, MA. Online workshops are on Thursdays via Zoom from 7:00-9:00 pm EST. To learn more or enroll, contact Courtney Joly-Lowdermilk at cjoly@bu.edu or call (617) 483-3827.
On Tuesday, Diverse Education virtually hosted a panel of experts who proposed ways to meet the mental health needs of minority students. According to Dr. Nahed Barakat, the interim training director and coordinator of diversity and inclusion activities at the University of Denver’s Health and Counseling Center, hiring a team of diverse mental health staff members with cultural competency is critical for students. Barakat says outreach and developing a support plan along with digital modes of support can be helpful to minority students. The panelists recommended that all members of the campus community be trained in mental health issues, especially first responders. Barakat says part of her job is to help students of color with their mental health issues thus avoiding involvement with the police.
US News reports on new study findings that show 1 in 3 first-year college students have anxiety or depression. While the researchers conducted the study with participants in Canada, experts point out that the findings also apply to college students in the United States. The director of young adult mental health at Brigham and Women’s Hospital in Boston, Dr. Rachel Conrad, says loneliness is a significant factor and that students who feel more socially connected to their peers and university life have a greater chance at recovering from anxiety and depressive symptoms.
Other News
The UNCF and The Steve Fund announce a new partnership focusing on addressing historically Black colleges and universities’ (HBCUs) and predominantly Black institutions’ (PBIs) student mental health.
The Ithacan reports on students expressing the need for more mental health services at college. Ithaca college junior Caroline Mannion details the ways the pandemic and juggling academics and social life has caused a strain on her mental health.
The Suffolk Journal interviews students who are experiencing burnout from the pandemic after returning to in-person learning. Students describe feeling emotionally and mentally exhausted from the combination of hybrid restrictions and in-person activities.
The Salt Lake Tribune features an article on why some Utah college students have found it difficult to return to in-person classes along with strategies to help. The article recommends that college students create lists to break apart tasks into smaller steps and practice movement and mindfulness-based activities.
US News reports on new research findings showing that despite vaccines and easing of lockdown, the mental health of college students are still poor after one year into the pandemic. Researchers predicted that between 42% and 56% of the study participants this spring were at risk for clinical depression.
In an op-ed for the Daily Iowan, student Ally Pronina writes about the importance of taking care of mental health during the holidays. “It is possible that the holidays can exacerbate feelings of loneliness and depression in college students who might not have a good relationship with their families and cannot go home for break,” writes Pronina.
Demand for mental health services at Siouxland universities in Iowa increases as final exams and semester deadlines approach. Terri Copple, the counseling director at Briar Cliff University, recommends taking study breaks and short walks.
Diversity, Equity and Inclusion
The Chronicle reports on the growing number of Hispanic Serving Institutions (HSIs) and whether these colleges are properly supporting the students they are meant to serve. In order to qualify as a Hispanic Serving Institution, 25% of full-time undergraduate students must be Hispanic. By that measure, 1 in 4 nonprofit colleges are predicted to meet the enrollment threshold to classify as an HSI within the next few years and access public funds. Estela Mara Bensimon, a professor of higher education at the University of Southern California and director of the Center for Urban Education, says colleges may not be doing what is necessary so that “Latinx students will feel like they have a stake in this institution and feel like they belong.”
A new survey from TheDream.US organization found that unauthorized immigrant students face greater obstacles after graduating. Higher Ed Dive reports that from the 1,000 unauthorized immigrant graduates surveyed, barriers impede their ability to find work and enroll in graduate programs. Over half of graduates desired attending graduate school, however, only 17% said they were eligible to do so, citing finances as a major hurdle. The ongoing coronavirus epidemic has negatively affected foreign-born workers more so than native-born workers in the United States. According to the research, occupational licensure had a significant impact on students’ potential salaries. Federal law prohibits granting licensure to unauthorized immigrants.
In an opinion piece for The Hechinger Report, Rona Sheramy, Ph.D., executive director of the Jewish Foundation for Education of Women (JFEW), argues that while the number of men may be decreasing from campus enrollments, it is important to remember that many college women continue to struggle. Sheramy writes that many low-income college women struggle with “the inability to pay for food, housing and other basic needs” as barriers to college completion and that “the pandemic has exacerbated the extraordinary challenges faced by student parents, 70% of whom are women.” “That so many women have persisted in college despite these challenges is a testament to their conviction that a degree is the best means of improving their lives and their families’ lives,” argues Sheramy.
Higher Education Leadership
Higher Ed Dive and Inside Higher Ed report on a new study that reveals college board members remain mostly white males. The report looked at responses from over 530 higher education institutions and analyzed the makeup of their governing boards. Women held approximately 35% of the seats on foundation boards and members of color accounted for a third of public boards and 17% for private boards. The majority of board members, or 77%, were over the age of 50 in 2020. “It’s important to consider the perspective that boards are part of an ecosystem of higher education, which is embedded in American society,” said Lesley McBain, director of research at AGB.
College Affordability
Higher Ed Dive reports that 42% of young adults who stopped out of college cited financial reasons for leaving. Over half of the 1,021 respondents were working full-time, most within the food or retail industry. The study identified ways institutions can work with students to help them return. Methods include offering certificates for credits earned, less expensive classes, workshops for student-related issues, counseling, and more. Most students said lower-cost courses and certifications in degrees can compel them to return. According to the study, the longer a student is away from college, the less likely they are to re-enroll.
Coronavirus: Safety and Protocol
With news of the Omicron variant, colleges and universities are preparing for an uncertain spring semester. The Washington Post and Inside Higher Ed interview health officials and experts who say college campuses are especially vulnerable to viral outbreaks. Gerri Taylor, co-chair of the American College Health Association COVID-19 Task Force, suggests that campus officials implement prevention measures and prepare for not if but when the Omicron will be detected in the United States. Taylor says that similarly to mask requirements, vaccine requirements, physical distancing and air filtration, similar prevention measures on college campuses will work to combat the spread of the Omicron variant. Dr. Sarah Van Orman, chief health officer at the University of Southern California, says “the unknowns include whether omicron will be more transmissible, how widespread it might become, if existing vaccines will provide strong protection against infection, and how sick it might make people.” See the “Frontlines” interview with Gerri Taylor and Dr. Sarah Van Orman in the Mary Christie Quarterly.
Last Monday, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention recommended booster shots for all adults. Inside Higher Ed and The Chronicle report that colleges are now considering requiring booster vaccinations on their campuses. The American College Health Association provided new COVID guidelines for institutions, which includes vaccinating as many people on campus as possible and continuing mitigation strategies such as contact-tracing, masking, and social distancing. The ACHA’s leaders say they are hoping to first examine breakthrough infections from fully vaccinated individuals on campuses. Public health experts are still investigating whether the Omicron variant is more transmissible than the Delta variant and the level of protection vaccines provide against it. Some universities are changing their decisions on vaccine mandates amidst the new variant.
