Mental and Behavioral Health
In the recent profile of the 2016 suicide of a Hamilton College sophomore, whose professors had known he was struggling but failed to intervene, the New York Times questioned the responsibility colleges have to prevent suicide or notify students’ parents if there are signs of “complete crash and burn.” While colleges are limited in the type and amount of information they can share about students with non-students, as mandated by the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act, some schools are working to assist students in broader ways.
The University of Oregon apologized on Sunday for an “insensitive” statement about the death of a student that drew widespread criticism on campus and online. The student, Dylan Pietrs, was found unresponsive on Saturday near Shasta Lake, in Northern California, a popular party destination for college students. While authorities have not yet determined if the death of Pietrs was related to alcohol consumption, or any fraternity activity, the university’s initial announcement on the matter was about the lake’s reputation as the site of excessive partying.
The Disability Rights Advocates, or DRA, filed a lawsuit against Stanford University on behalf of three individuals claiming “punitive, illegal, and discriminatory” responses to mental health disabilities. The suit alleges that Stanford placed three students on involuntary leaves of absence after experiences with suicidal ideation and self-harm, without looking into possible accommodations for each of them.
As a group assignment, journalism students at the University of Minnesota were tasked with identifying an underserved community at the university and reporting stories that directly affect its members for a group assignments. The young journalists quickly found that students in recovery from or facing drug and alcohol addiction at the school do not have adequate support, and feel their unique needs were not being met by the institution.
Many colleges take comprehensive, science-based approaches to suicide prevention and integrate those efforts with campus-wide risk-management efforts. In an op-ed in Inside Higher Ed, Paul D. Polychronis, director emeritus of the Counseling Center at University of Central Missouri, and Peter F. Lake, director of the Center for Excellence in Higher Education Law and Policy at Stetson University College of Law, argue that public cries for accountability for colleges may be motivating them to overreact to the risks associated with student suicide.
On Monday night, PBS aired a story about the recent book “Portraits of Resilience” by MIT professor Daniel Jackson, in which he shares first-person accounts by students and photographs of students challenged by anxiety and depression. On Tuesday, three of the students shared their individual experiences, including discussion of treatment and their own stories of resilience.
The University of South Florida won the 2018 Active Minds Healthy Campus Award, who honors schools that demonstrate excellence in prioritizing and promoting the health and well-being of their students. USF runs the Success and Wellness Coaching Program that partners mentors students to help manage the stress of campus life and set personal and professional goals. The school was also recognized for its wellness mobile app, relaxation stations and food pantry.
Students and others at the University of California, Davis, can now connect with a national service that provides crisis counseling through text messages. The option to text for crisis counseling adds to a comprehensive program of mental health support for students.
Diversity and Inclusion
Last week, the police chief at Texas State University resigned, less than two weeks after his department arrested four protesters, three students and one former student, who had blocked the police during a racially charged protest in a parking garage. The decision to arrest the protesters inflamed an already tense racial climate on the campus. The University has become a hotbed of racial unrest over the past few years as minority students claim the administration has done too little to counter threats posed by hate groups or to offer a curriculum that reflects the diversity of the student body. Meanwhile, conservative students say they object to being associated with white supremacists and complain that the administration hasn’t done enough to support people who hold right-leaning views.
Two new sources of evidence – federal data and a report on a controversial federal-student-loan program — add to the disturbing picture about disproportionate level of student-loan debt borne by black students. The National Postsecondary Student Aid Study shows that in 2000, the proportion of black graduate students with no debt was quite a bit lower than for their white, Asian, or Hispanic peers. But that proportion dropped sharply over time. Just more than half of white graduate students had no debt in 2000, a share that dropped to about 40 percent by 2016. By comparison, at the start of the same period, 37 percent of black graduate students carried no debt; by the end, only 17 percent did. The racial disparities were even more striking for high-debt borrowers, those who owed $100,000 or more.
Southern Methodist University is taking an unusual approach to combat racial stereotypes: asking people on its campus to own up to them. In an internal survey, the university poses questions, many of which indulge racial stereotypes, about different ethnicities, and asks participants to indicate whether they would want the questions answered. Among the questions: “Why are black people so loud?” “Do Asians really eat dogs?” “What is the difference between white trash and white people?”
As the academic year draws to a close, black students at the University of Virginia report continued trauma from the white-supremacist Unite the Right rally.
Sexual Assault and Title IX
The LA Times reports on the University of Southern California gynecologist who practiced on campus for 26 years despite repeated complaints of inappropriate conduct. Dr. George Tyndall was repeatedly accused of misconduct toward young patients, beginning in the 1990s, when co-workers alleged he was improperly photographing students’ genitals. In the years that followed, patients and nursing staff accused him again and again of “creepy” behavior. However, Tyndall was allowed to continue practicing and it was not until 2016, when a nurse reported him to the campus rape crisis center, that he was suspended. An internal USC investigation determined that Tyndall’s behavior amounted to sexual harassment of students, and in a secret deal last summer, top administrators allowed Tyndall to resign quietly with a financial payout. The university did not inform Tyndall’s patients. Nor did USC immediately report him at the time to the Medical Board of California, the agency responsible for protecting the public from problem doctors. Six women claiming that they were sexually victimized by Tyndall are now suing the school. Two hundred USC professors are calling on President C.L. Max Nikias to resign over the coverup.
In an op-ed in the LA Times, Charles Ruebsamen, a USC graduate, rebuked his alma mater for the way it handles Title IX grievances. He wrote “USC has utterly failed its female students. The unwillingness of the university to take decisive action after years of complaints constitutes abhorrent negligence and is a horrifying example of how women are not taken seriously when reporting abuse or in matters of their own health. It also reflects a larger problem of universities in general protecting their reputations at the expense of the safety and well-being of women.”
Hunger and Homelessness
A recent survey of California State University students on 23 campuses found that one in five experienced food insecurity. Among Black and first-generation students, the number reporting food insecurity reached 65 percent. In California, some food pantries connect struggling students to support services like the assistance program known as CalFresh as part of a $7.5 million outreach plan.
Student Safety
The Montana State University Behavioral Intervention Team, which meets for a few hours every week, is part of an effort to avoid information “silos ” in addressing student safety. The group of about nine people discusses reports from professors, parents, students, resident assistants and others about students who may be a danger to themselves or others. At the first Montana Threat Assessment Conference, Matt Caires, the MSU Dean of Students, presented the school’s information-sharing and decision-sharing approach.
Substance Use
In The Dartmouth, Ruben Gallardo analyzed the issue of substance use and abuse at Dartmouth College, interviewing students and alumni on their experiences at the school and their perspective on the new policies that aim to reduce high-risk drinking and drug use.
College Affordability
Financial aid facilitates college access, but according to the Washington Post, it should be reimagined so that it also fosters college completion. Students who discontinue their education for financial reasons often do so when conventional financial aid reaches its limits. And students most likely to drop out due to financial distress are disproportionately underrepresented minorities, from low-income families, or first-generation students. Some colleges and universities are recognizing that for low-income students nearing graduation, a small amount of extra money – even a few hundred dollars – can determine whether they go on to complete their degree or have to drop out.
