The Surgeon General warned of a “mental-health crisis” among young people, adding urgency to long-standing concerns. Campuses are rushing to address these issues, but their efforts may do more harm than good because they’re rooted in the disease model of mental health. The disease model sees painful emotions as evidence of a disorder. It presumes … Continue reading “Let’s Rethink the Mental Health “Crisis””
It has been two months since the start of the Fall semester at UNC-Chapel Hill. In those two months, four students have died by suicide on campus. In response to the tragic events, UNC Chancellor Guskiewicz announced a Wellness Day for students on “Tuesday, Oct. 12, as a step in addressing mental health.” October 12 … Continue reading “UNC-Chapel Hill in a “Mental Health Crisis””
Long before Covid, mental health experts declared a different sort of pandemic—a precipitous decline in mental health on college campuses. One 2019 survey by the American College Health Association found that over the course of a year, 55.9 percent of students reported feeling hopelessness, 65.6 percent reported feeling very lonely, 70.8 percent reported feeling very … Continue reading “Is Our Obsession with College Fueling a Mental Health Crisis?”
Students have had to make many sacrifices over the past year, be they financial, academic, or personal. The sudden changes and conflicting campus policies have taken a significant toll on their well-being and mental health. After a lifetime of in-class learning alongside their peers, colleges pushed them off-campus and into de facto isolation via Zoom. … Continue reading “The Pandemic May Be Ending, But Student Anxiety Isn’t”
To the editor: In the midst of a global health crisis, suffering, fear and anxiety are to be expected. This should not surprise anyone. In fact, these have always been part of life. The anticipation of one’s mortality at different times—especially now—is unavoidable. Megan Zogby’s latest “Did You Know? Students Still Struggling with Mental Health?” … Continue reading “Letter to the Editor: The “new normal” of learning”
As students’ grades are falling at alarming rates, so too is their mental health. During the pandemic, students have felt as if they have little to no control over their futures as the world around them changes. According to Insider, “US schools are reporting massive increases in failing grades—and experts are questioning whether it’s students … Continue reading “Did You Know? Students Still Struggling with Mental Health”
The mental stress for college students sparked by COVID-19 is showing up in campus mental health centers. New data from Penn State University’s Center for Collegiate Mental Health (CCMH) found that, between July and November 2020, 33 percent of students seeking help from campus counseling centers said they were there for COVID-19 related problems. The … Continue reading “Did You Know? Of Students Seeking Mental Health Help, 33% Cite the Pandemic”
Remember the stereotype of the lazy college professor living an almost stress-free life while enjoying tenure, virtually a sinecure, often supported by taxpayer dollars? Tomes and articles identifying examples of this professor abound. Along with this job protection comes the opportunity to impose political correctness with impunity. Try telling that story to true contrarians. For … Continue reading “Mental Health and the Professoriate During the Pandemic”