It’s Never Too Soon to Talk About Mental Health
As The Chronicle recently reported, a number of institutions have added the topic of student mental health to an already-crowded orientation schedule, using speakers, videos, skits, and an online course to educate students about their own, and one another’s, mental-health issues and available resources. Mental-health concerns (recognizing symptoms, knowing how to get help, etc.) are sharing the lineup with alcohol policies, sexual-assault awareness, library resources, and roommate relations, not to mention the student-organization carnival and numerous barbecues, pizza dinners, and ice-cream socials. It is a worthy effort, but orientation week is not enough, and it’s definitely not soon enough.