Skip to main content
  • Home
  • About
  • Faculty Experts
  • For The Media
  • Videos
  • Topics
    • Alumni
    • Events
    • Faculty
    • Library
    • Research
    • Students
    • All Topics
  • Contact
  • Submit
Health & Society
  • All News
  • Arts & Culture
  • Business & Economy
  • Campus & Community
  • Health & Society
  • Media, Law & Policy
  • STEM
  • Veterans
  • |
  • Alumni
  • The Peel
  • Athletics
Sections
  • All News
  • Arts & Culture
  • Business & Economy
  • Campus & Community
  • Health & Society
  • Media, Law & Policy
  • STEM
  • Veterans
  • |
  • Alumni
  • The Peel
  • Athletics
  • Home
  • About
  • Faculty Experts
  • For The Media
  • Videos
  • Topics
    • Alumni
    • Events
    • Faculty
    • Library
    • Research
    • Students
    • All Topics
  • Contact
  • Submit
Health & Society

University Hosts Second Annual Mental Health Awareness Week

Monday, October 2, 2017, By Joyce LaLonde
Share
Active Mindsfaculty and staffOffice of Health PromotionStudents

From Oct. 2-5, the University will hold its second annual Mental Health Awareness Week. The effort is coordinated by a cross-campus collaboration, including the Office of Health Promotion and the Mental Wellness Peer Educators, Student Association, Active Minds at SU, the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) at SU, the Counseling Center, the Disability Cultural Center, Hendricks Chapel and the Office of Student Assistance.

Mental Health Awareness WeekThroughout the week, the campus community is invited to engage in discussions and activities about mental health. This year, the organizers wanted to create opportunities and spaces to talk about mental health at SU while raising awareness and providing connections to campus resources on campus.

“Mental health advocacy is about supporting each other, acknowledging struggles, celebrating resiliency and continuing to work toward positive mental health as a community,” says Angie Pati, vice president of Student Association. “We all may have different mental health stories, but there is one unifying factor: we are never alone. Mental health advocacy is about making sure we truly feel that sentiment.”

The schedule for the week is as follows:

  • Monday, Oct. 2—The Mental Health Awareness Week kick-off hosted by Student Association will be on the Quad from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Students are invited to stop by and enjoy the inflatables, games and free T-shirts. The event will also address inequity and mental health alongside Shack-a-thon.
  • Tuesday, Oct. 3—Intersectionality Matters, hosted by NAMI and Active Minds, will be a roundtable discussion about mental health and identity at 6:30 p.m. in 214 Hall of Languages.
  • Wednesday, Oct. 4—Send Silence Packing, hosted by Active Minds, is an exhibition on the Quad to represent the number of college students lost to suicide each year.
  • Thursday, Oct. 5—Therapy Dog Thursday, hosted by the Office of Health Promotion in partnership with Pet Partners, brings therapy dogs to the Quad from 2-6 p.m. Also, Sunset Yoga, hosted by Student Association, welcomes Dean Konkol of Hendricks Chapel to speak on the Quad at 6 p.m. with yoga to follow at 6:30 p.m.

Throughout the week, the campus community will also be invited to tie green ribbons in the Orange Grove for mental health awareness.

“This week gives us opportunities to think about how we play a vital role in creating a community of caring that helps us find connection and belonging at Syracuse, practice compassion toward others and ourselves, and start what can sometimes be difficult conversations about mental health,” says Kristelle Aisaka, health promotion specialist for mental health in the Office of Health Promotion. “Mental Health Awareness Week is not only about the week itself, but also about how we can continue to build awareness and support for mental health more broadly throughout the rest of the year and beyond.”

Following the awareness week, the Office of Health Promotion Mental Wellness Peer Educators will continue advocacy and education work. For them, Mental Health Awareness Week provides an avenue to begin these discussions.

“I hope that with the events, more students will stop and think about mental health and well-being empowerment,” says Crystal Hendriks, a senior in Falk College and mental wellness peer educator. “Every event that involves getting feedback and raising discussion about mental health from students will help us as peer educators be able to see the needs that we can address.”

Mental Wellness Peer Educators are available throughout the academic year to give presentations and workshops to classes, offices, floors or student organizations about mental wellness. Current programs relate to sleep, stress reduction, time management and mindfulness. Schedule a session for your group here.

More information about Mental Health Awareness Week or access to join the volunteer listserv is available on the Office of Health Promotion website. For questions, contact Aisaka at kkaisaka@syr.edu.

  • Author

Joyce LaLonde

  • Recent
  • Eight New Recruits Begin Campus Peace Officer Academy
    Thursday, May 19, 2022, By Christine Weber
  • Media Tip Sheet: Consequences of China Lockdown
    Thursday, May 19, 2022, By Vanessa Marquette
  • Dean Rajiv ‘Raj’ Dewan to Step Down as Dean of the School of Information Studies
    Thursday, May 19, 2022, By News Staff
  • 2022 Graduates Reflect on Service as Academic Coaches
    Thursday, May 19, 2022, By Ellen de Graffenreid
  • Funding Expands for Newhouse Professors’ Work on Technology to Combat Fake News
    Wednesday, May 18, 2022, By Wendy S. Loughlin

More In Health & Society

Falk Graduate Student Rebecca Garofano Honored by Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics

Rebecca Garofano, a Falk College graduate student in nutrition science, was honored with the Outstanding Dietetics Student Award at the New York State Academy of Nutrition and Dietetics Annual Meeting and Expo April 8-9 in Syracuse. Garofano is actively engaged…

Phillandra Smith Finds and Fosters Community at Syracuse University

Phillandra Smith hadn’t considered a Ph.D. until a professor at Barry University asked what she would do after finishing a master’s degree. Smith, who is from the Bahamas, had planned to return to the classroom. “This professor was honestly really…

Couple, Family Counseling Services Available at the Falk College

Sometimes we need extra support to manage the more difficult challenges in life, including challenges in our family relationships. A trained couple and family therapist can make an enormous difference in keeping these important connections healthy and strong for life….

Design Professor Co-Authors Book on Design Thinking for a Regenerative Future

A new book about the importance of design thinking for a regenerative future grew from a conversation at Syracuse University between two like-minded visionaries. In September 2018, world-renowned futurist and thinker David Houle ’69, a graduate of the College of…

From Orange to Black and Gold: Athletic Advising Certificate Helps Ella Simkins ’20, G’21 Land at Army Lax

Ella Simkins ’20, G’21 had big plans for the 2020 women’s lacrosse season. A standout defender, in her junior year she had started all 21 games, recorded career highs in caused turnovers and draw controls, and ranked third on the…

Subscribe to SU Today

If you need help with your subscription, contact sunews@syr.edu.

Connect With Us

  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Youtube
  • LinkedIn
Social Media Directory

For the Media

Find an Expert Follow @SyracuseUNews
  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Youtube
  • LinkedIn
  • @SyracuseU
  • @SyracuseUNews
  • @SUCampus
  • Social Media Directory
  • Accessibility
  • Privacy
  • Campus Status
  • Syracuse.edu
© 2022 Syracuse University News. All Rights Reserved.