Sexual Assault Awareness Month – April 2012

Posted on April 25, 2012 by MyStudentBody

Although the month of April is coming to a close, we want to share with you a note from Amy Cavender, MyStudentBody Implementation Specialist, about Sexual Assault Awareness Month. The tips below for programming can also be used year-round to raise awareness of this important issue on college campuses.

In April, schools all over the country observe Sexual Assault Awareness Month with educational events, media campaigns, and forums for survivors of assault. MyStudentBody makes information and resources for understanding and preventing sexual assault and other forms of sexual violence available year-round, both in the Essentials course and in articles and tools in the Student Center.

By sharing this information with students early in their college careers, colleges and universities can give students useful tools to prevent sexual violence and to help themselves and others if they experience an assault or find themselves in an abusive relationship. You can use the information gathered through student Sexual Violence Rate Myself assessments to guide your approach to the issue on your campus.

MyStudentBody works best as part of an overall prevention and awareness campaign. You can find information about raising awareness and preventing sexual violence in our library.

For more ideas on how to address sexual violence prevention on your campus, the National Sexual Violence Resource Center (NSVRC) offers a wonderful clearinghouse of resources on its Sexual Violence Awareness Month site. NSVRC is using a variety of approaches to communicate about the issue, from videos to Twitter-based chats to printable materials. There’s a great resource page that has everything from suggested events to templates for letters to the editor of the student or local media.

As a former member of the Primary Prevention Planning Team at the Hays-Caldwell Women’s Center in San Marcos, TX, I was especially glad to see that NSVRC offers an information sheet about working with men’s groups to prevent sexual violence. Working with men to prevent sexual violence is an issue that’s dear to my heart, as well as an effective strategy. I hope these resources will help make your sexual violence awareness and prevention activities more successful.

Get more helpful tips from MyStudentBody in your inbox by subscribing to the blog in the sidebar on our homepage.

Photo credit: http://www.yorkblog.com/smart/2012/03/29/sexual-assault-awareness-month-kicks-off-today/

Assessing Effectiveness and Looking Ahead

Posted on April 19, 2012 by MyStudentBody

On most campuses, spring is the time to assess the effectiveness of current programs and develop budgets for the upcoming fiscal year.

Our library offers ideas for evaluating your prevention programs and updating drug, alcohol, and other policies.

If you’re hoping to ramp up your campus approach to student mental health, a new guide from the Jed Foundation can help. This national organization is dedicated to reducing emotional distress and preventing suicide among college students.

Developed in partnership with the Education Development Center, Inc. (EDC), Campus MHAP: A guide to campus mental health action planning provides a comprehensive framework for planning, engaging stakeholders in the community, and making the best use of existing resources. It also offers specific tactics for suicide prevention and caring for students’ mental health.

The guide can be downloaded as a PDF, and EDC’s series also includes four webinars for college and university campus professionals working in mental health and suicide prevention.

Get more helpful tips from MyStudentBody in your inbox by subscribing to the blog in the sidebar on our homepage.

Photo credit: www.MyStudentBody.com

Commentary: The Crucial Role of Alcohol Awareness Month

Posted on April 16, 2012 by MyStudentBody

April is Alcohol Awareness Month. Deann Jepsen, MS, gives some compelling commentary on what this month means and what we can do to make a lasting impression when it comes to alcohol awareness. Jepsen is particularly helpful in laying out statistics to help debunk some misconceptions about alcohol misuse and abuse. Much of his commentary can also be applied to college students because he talks a lot about the influence of underage drinking. Check out the full commentary here.

Photo credit: The Partnership at DrugFree.org

Common Mistakes Made by Prevention Practitioners

Posted on April 13, 2012 by MyStudentBody

If you haven’t seen it yet, there’s a new blog out there called the SCOPE Blog. According to the blog’s website, SCOPE, the School and College Organization for Prevention Educators, is an independent, not-for-profit membership association for prevention educators and professionals.

Every week they post what they call the SCOPE Thought Piece, a question regarding best practices for the prevention field that’s answered by a number of professionals (all of whom do amazing work in the field – hello Beth DeRicco and Linda Langford!). This week’s question is, “What are some common mistakes made by prevention practitioners that should be avoided?” Here are some brief tidbits from the responses, but go to the blog for the full discussion.

Michelle N. Issadore, M.Ed., says, “We must break out of the cycle of reacting to crises…” Read more.

Beth DeRicco, Ph.D., says, “Common mistakes include: Not linking their issue to the particular needs or concerns of the power brokers of the constituent they are working with…” Read more.

Jane Stapleton, M.A., says, “While prevention practitioners are well-intentioned, they sometimes don’t teach people the skills to prevent the problem at hand…” Read more.

Linda Langford, Sc.D., says, “One common mistake is continuing to implement prevention efforts in a way that research suggests isn’t effective…” Read more.

Alan Berkowitz, Ph.D., says, “Among the most common mistakes are lack of planning and not creating the foundation or infrastructure necessary for success…” Read more.

Photo credit: www.MyStudentBody.com

Wake Forest Uses MyStudentBody Program to Supplement Mandatory Student Health Course

Posted on April 3, 2012 by MyStudentBody

Located in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, Wake Forest University is a small, nationally-renowned liberal arts college with approximately 5,000 undergraduate students.

Wake Forest’s course offerings and degree programs are designed to provide a well-rounded, diverse education for its students. Undergraduates may select among 38 major fields and 55 minors, with over half of graduating seniors seeking degree credits abroad.

In order to ensure students enjoy not only a well-rounded academic education, but a thorough health education as well, Wake Forest requires students to pass a health course that informs students about the effect of lifestyle behaviors that may lead to disease and other illnesses.

The Challenge

Every undergraduate student is required to enroll in and pass a course called HES 100: Lifestyle and Health. On the Wake Forest website, this course is described as “a lecture course that deals with the effect of lifestyle behaviors on various health outcomes, including cardiovascular disease, cancer, and sexually transmitted diseases.”

The purpose of the course is to “give students a guide for living a healthy lifestyle,” said health educator Natascha Romeo. “Every student must take the class to graduate.”

Since implementing a mandatory health course was challenging, Wake Forest sought a program that would blur the lines between a standard lecture course and a personalized wellness tool that students would find interesting and useful. The campus had taken great pains to ensure this balance, including bringing in health specialists to elaborate on specific lifestyle topics relevant to students.

To find out how Natascha and Wake Forest University met this challenge, read more here.

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