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The Role Faculty Can Play in Supporting Student Mental Health: �The September Surge

NENA Rise and Grind�Friday September 30, 2022

Jeff Lolli & Angie Corbo, Widener University

Donna Albano, Stockton University

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….The September Surge

Welcome Back…and along with that is a surge in student mental health concerns
Already dealing with mental health concerns of students at all levels

Lack of Engagement and Initiative – Struggling to Connect
Uptick in academic assistance/accommodations required by students

Widener University Examples:

Early Alert System at Week 5
Care Team
Mental Heath Task Force
TAO – Therapy Assistance Online (Widener and Stockton)
Mental Health First Aid – Train the Trainer to provide faculty training

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The State of Student Mental Health in �Higher Education

Since mental health challenges among college students have risen significantly in recent years, the emotional well-being of students is currently a top priority in higher education (JED Foundation, 2022).
According to the annual Healthy Minds Study (2021)

More than 80% of students reported that emotional or mental health difficulties hurt their academic performance one or more days in the previous month.
Forty-one percent of college students screened positive for major to moderate depression and one-third screened positive for anxiety.

Data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (2020) shows that suicide risk is highest for adults ages 18 to 25. These numbers are even higher in underrepresented and marginalized groups on campus.
Over a quarter of the faculty respondents believe that institutions do a poor job of reaching out to students of color who have mental health concerns (Mary Christie Foundation, 2021).
Normal academic pressures can be associated with several common mental health symptoms, including anxiety, depression, substance use, and poor sleep quality. (Pascoe, Hetrick & Parker, 2019).
A strong majority (87%) believe that student mental health has “worsened” or “significantly worsened” during the COVID-19 pandemic (Mary Christie Foundation, 2021).
This is a global crisis.

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Faculty Are on the Frontlines

The Mary Christie Foundation (2021) found :

In the past 12 months, nearly 80% of higher education faculty reported that they dealt with various student mental health issues (Mary Christie Foundation, 2021)
Only 51% of faculty reported that they could recognize a student who is in mental distress.
Of the faculty surveyed, 73% stated they would appreciate professional development in this area and 61% of the faculty believe it should be mandatory that all faculty receive basic training in how to respond to students experiencing mental or emotional distress.

21% of faculty agree that supporting students in mental and emotional distress has taken a toll on their own mental health.

The Health Minds Study (2020) found 35% of students nationally stated they would first talk to a faculty member if they had a mental health issue affecting their academic performance.
According to the JED Foundation (2022):

While the primary role of faculty is to share knowledge and expertise with students, faculty are often the people students turn to when they are struggling.
This gives faculty a unique opportunity to support student mental health and create a culture of care on campus.
Most faculty are not clinicians, and thus, supporting students’ emotional health, especially given all of the responsibilities faculty already have can feel intimidating and overwhelming.

Mental health professionals at college and university counseling centers are exhausted and

experiencing burnout (Biancolli, 2021).

Students may not be seen immediately

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The Transformation of the Faculty Role as Mental �Health and Wellness Concerns Influence the Holistic �Learning Environment

FACT: Higher education is at a turning point.

Should the accommodations made during the pandemic become the norm? Many standards and requirements were loosened when classes shifted to online including reduced expectations on quantity and quality of work.

Faculty and students have reported a widespread breakdown in learning during 2020. According to Malesic (2022), students learn less online than they do in person in part because online courses demand considerable self -discipline and motivation, which many college students don’t yet possess. In fact, not all course content translates ideally to a remote format.
In a June 2021 survey by Inside Higher Ed found that more than half of students said they learned less that academic year than they did before the pandemic.

Additionally, the switch to online resulted in more course failure and withdrawals in a study completed by the Virginia community college system. Furthermore, students nationwide reported a greater willingness to cheat as well.

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The Transformation of the Faculty Role as Mental Health and Wellness Concerns Influence the Holistic Learning Environment

During the pandemic time of virtual learning, students have developed habits that have harmed their ability to learn.

Students are out of the habit of “coming to class”
Out of the habit of “engaging” with faculty about coursework, research, advising and more.

“…students’ pandemic setbacks and disruptions have only increased the need for help with focus, time management, and breaking down tasks into manageable parts” (Kafta, 2021)
Colleges and Universities have to provide environments that encourage intellectual habits like curiosity, honesty and participation.
The mantra “meet the students where they are” should be reciprocal, requiring that students meet their teachers where they are - in the classroom, labs, office where they can excel.

These habits ARE education.

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How Can Educators Rebuild a Culture of High �Standards in Courses While Empowering Students to �Reestablish Their Ability to Learn?

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How Can Faculty Support Students?

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The Increasing Demands on Faculty Members

Faculty are experts in their content area and field.
Faculty have experience with classroom teaching, office hours, and academic advising
Students will open up to a faculty member with whom they trust
Most faculty feel overworked and under-qualified to assist students with mental health concerns
Faculty should not attempt to be the primary support for students with mental health issues

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Establishing a Supportive Classroom Environment

👍 Build a rapport with students by acknowledging mental health and well

being as a priority.

👍 Re-conceptualize attendance policies to reward engagement (in class or

via discussion boards)

👍 Be flexible with due dates, when possible

👍 Encourage students to reach out to you when they encounter learning

hurdles

👍 Provide information for students to contact campus resources

👍 Listen. REFER. Support.

👍 Know emergency protocols

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Embed Mental Health Messages

On Your LMS Platform

In Your Course Syllabus

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Mental Health is Health

Providing Links on your Syllabus or LMS can send a message of support and serve as a valuable resource.

https://www.mentalhealthishealth.us

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Initiating a conversation “Seize the Awkward”

Initiating a conversation may feel awkward.

Recognition of someone’s struggle may open the door help by a trained professional.

https://seizetheawkward.org/learn/resources

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A guide to the “Awkward” Conversation

Starting the conversation: I notice that ….

You’ve missed a few assignment or have missed classes
You seem to be tired

General Responses

I’m so glad you told me about this. Let’s connect you to the campus support services who can help.
That sounds so hard. I’m sorry you are going through this. Let’s connect you to the campus support services who can help.
It sounds like you are really hurting right now. Let’s connect you to the campus support services who can help.

For the hesitant student

Thank you for trusting me with this information. I want to support you through this. There are people on campus who had an expertise who can assist you. I am still here for you.
This is so much to handle on your own. I admire how well you have handled this. Let’s talk with professionals who can offer help on how to get through this.
Your safety and wellbeing are important to me. I am happy to walk you over / call the Counseling Center now.

Reinforce

Thank you for trusting me with this. I am here to support you. I want you to be well and succeed.

For an emergency

Follow your university’s protocol: Call the Counseling Center or Campus Safely immediately. Even if the student asked you not to make the referral.

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The Growing Responsibilities of College Faculty

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The Impact on Faculty Well-Being

In a piece published in the The Chronicle of Higher Education, October, 2020, On the Verge of Burnout: Covid-19s impact on faculty well being and career plans a Nationwide survey of 1,122 professors revealed:

More than two-thirds of survey respondents are struggling with increased workloads and a deterioration of work-life balance—particularly female faculty members.
Many faculty members responding to the Chronicle survey say they are considering leaving academe; and a surprisingly higher number of tenured faculty say this year caused them to hasten their retirement.
Faculty members say they need continued support from administrators so they, in turn, can help their students through this time.

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Mental Exhaustion

Disparate Effects

Institutional Response

Source: On the Verge of Burnout: Covid-19s impact on faculty well being and career plans: A Nationwide survey of 1,122 professors

Jeff

A Mental Exhaustion

Faculty members are experiencing high levels of stress, hopelessness, anger, and grief.
They report heavy workloads and say their work-life balance has deteriorated.
Many say they miss the “human connection” in teaching, and more than one-third have considered changing careers and leaving higher education. The pandemic has taken a significant toll on the lives of the faculty, with potentially profound implications for the future.

Disparate Effects

The pandemic’s impact has not been equal. Those with caregiving duties are struggling without the support of day care, school, or senior centers for older relatives, and this tends to have disproportionately affected women.
The stress that women, Black, brown, gay, nonbinary and disabled faculty members face in more normal times to prove themselves is greatly heightened; faculty of color also often come from or have family or friends in communities with high rates of Covid-19. College leaders will need to consider the pandemic’s ramifications on different segments of their faculty.

Institutional Response

In spite of feelings of isolation, many faculty members praise their institutions’ response, and a majority — if a slim one — feels at least somewhat or well supported
during the pandemic.
It is a moment that calls for empathy and support for faculty well-being from college leaders, as well as tangible actions to confront the challenges
and obstacles that faculty members are facing.

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Identifying Student Well-Being and Faculty Self-Care.

SNACK

S – Stop what you are doing and take a deep breath

N – Notice what is going on around and within you, and the influence of others (are you anxious, or are you feeling anxious because others around you are?)

A – Accept and acknowledge the situation without judgment (good/bad; right/wrong)

C – Curiosity: what am I feeling, and where am I feeling it? What do I need right now?

K – Kindness: respond to yourself (and others) with kindness and compassion

Source: Gloria Seel- LCSW, LCADC, MAC - AtlantiCare Behavioral Health - Well Being During Crises Presentation

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Helping Colleagues Navigate Stressful Times

Make yourself available
Focus on listening over advising
Keep it productive
Set boundaries

https://www.higheredjobs.com/articles/articleDisplay.cfm?ID=3158

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What’s Next?

Recent data suggest that the mental health of faculty and staff has also been impacted by the pandemic, with more than 50% of faculty respondents reporting a significant increase in emotional drain and work-related stress in 1 survey
Identifying how we can support faculty and staff
Increasing faculty engagement
Possible interventions:

Make Mental Health a Top Priority
Convene Key Stakeholders
Use Resource Mapping
Train Faculty & Staff
Develop Peer Support Groups
Implement Continued Training
Follow a Strategic Framework

https://www.psychiatrictimes.com/view/mental-health-on-college-campuses-supporting-faculty-and-staff

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