In an effort to support student well-being, St. Lawrence is joining JED Campus. St. Lawrence aims to understand the mental health needs and meet those needs of the student body.
JED campus is part of the larger JED nonprofit foundation. Phil and Donna Satow founded JED after their youngest son, Jed, passed away due to suicide. Founded in 2000, the JED website states that “together we’re helping students navigate the emotional challenges of high school and college, prepare for adulthood, and thrive.”
The foundation focuses on assisting colleges and high schools in creating comprehensive plans to support student mental health and well-being and reducing substance misuse as well as suicide. The foundation also states that through education and training, students will have the necessary support to navigate challenges of school and thrive.
St. Lawrence’s partnership with JED was made possible through work done by the Advancement team and a scholarship from Morgan Stanley. In an email sent to the student body, Dean of Student Life, Hagi Bradley, wrote, “JED Campuses partner with JED to not only assess and enhance the work that is already being done, but also to create positive, systemic change in the campus community.”
“Awareness of mental health, and of just how critical and undertreated it is, has risen sharply over the past couple decades, particularly on college campuses across our country, and especially during COVID,” wrote Bradley.
One study conducted by an Environmental Psychologist, Mathew Browning and colleagues focused on the pandemic’s impact on mental health in college students, according to Science News. The team surveyed 2,500 students from seven different universities in the country in Spring 2020. Bradley and colleagues reported that about 85 percent of students felt a moderate to high level of stress as a result of the pandemic.
Browning reported that “Colleges and universities must meet students’ basic safety and psychological needs before true learning can occur.”
St. Lawrence has made efforts throughout the pandemic to address student mental health concerns.
In the Fall 2020 semester, various groups on campus including Health and Counseling Services, Student Life, and the Wellness Community Based Learning course worked to address and improve student wellbeing. These events included Mental Wealth days, as reported by St. Lawrence University Communications. Additionally, St. Lawrence created a Wellness Education office this August.
St. Lawrence’s partnership with JED is a four-year program. St. Lawrence will develop a team to assess programs, policy, substance abuse, mental health promotion, and suicide prevention. St. Lawrence Communications states that after the program, JED campus clinicians “will provide comprehensive feedback that will identify successes and opportunities for enhancements at St. Lawrence.”
In the email sent to students, Bradley encourages students to learn about the JED foundation, as well as expect a survey that will be used in St. Lawrence’s program with JED.