The University of King’s College has been planning a new mental health strategy since June 2024. The plan includes mental health crisis response training for faculty, student support groups, and possibly adding a peer support worker to the nightly patrol team.
Student Support Advisor Isaac Wright is leading the initiative with a working group of both students and faculty.
Isaac Wright, student support advisor, is leading the initiative.
ANNA RAK/THE WATCH
“The culture around mental health here is really open and accepting of many people with diverse mental health concerns,” says Wright. “But I think there are things that students are telling us that we can be learning from in terms of the university’s response.”
Over the summer, the working group conducted a survey released to all students, held consultations with faculty and staff, and drafted a document outlining the values that will guide the initiative.
Wright says these values include the strategy being student-centered, equitable, diverse, transparent, focused on education, and inclusive. The group will accept student and faculty feedback until the end of December. The feedback will from from both surveys and in-person discussion.
Peer support worker Anika Panet-Carino is part of the team working to bring this new strategy to King’s. She is a third-year student supporting others through mental health challenges on campus. A
peer support worker may be tasked with joining the campus patrol team in the new strategy.
“I think it’s overall a great idea,” says Panet-Carino. “I think that it’s needed, and I think it’s important to have people who are trained in different aspects of mental health to be around at all times.”
King’s student Sam Flood says more physical support might be a better option than what’s planned for the new strategy.
“What I think would make a crazy difference in people’s lives more so than support groups, where you have to make the effort to go somewhere and open up, is material stuff like food,” says Flood.
The strategy’s working group received a grant to run five identity based support groups led by community facilitators. These include an Indigenous support group, a neurodivergent support group, a queer comedy group, a gender exploration journey group, and a racialized student support group.
“King’s has a huge diversity problem,” says student Lilian Hougan-Veenema. “I feel like these new things are really awesome, but it’s very hard to negotiate with a system that is set up against people.”
In Spring 2025, the King’s Mental Health Strategy working group will present its document to the Board of Governors for approval. If approved, King’s will officially adopt the new strategy.
“I don’t think a strategy can solve everything for an individual’s mental health,” says Isaac Wright. “But my hope is the strategy will give us more opportunities to support students.”
