By Josie Alvarez, Director of Student Wellness
Visiting our graduates on their college campuses is one of the highlights of my responsibilities in the Graduate Support Program. In addition to fulfilling our 11-year commitment, these visits are so important towards building relationships, providing assistance and guidance, and checking on their well-being. Furthermore, our students are accomplishing their final lap in their educational journey and it is our responsibility to support them to the finish line towards graduation.
It is vital for me to visit our college students to see them face-to-face and to address any challenges they may be facing. These challenges might include financial, academic, family, roommates, or their mental health. Many of our parents don’t have the flexibility to leave their jobs and visit their children on campus. Mrs. Xochitl Alvarez and I have the flexibility and have made it a priority to visit our students as a preventative measure rather than reactive.
Through the college campus visits, I have been able to gain valuable insight and a wealth of information that I cannot gain through text messages, emails, or FaceTime. I can see and hear their emotions about their classes, professors, the friends they are meeting, as well as their mental health.
I encourage our college students to practice self-advocacy and provide guidance and recommendations on how to navigate the challenges and roadblocks they may encounter as first-generation students. As a first-generation student myself, I have empathy and compassion for what they are experiencing as I have had similar experiences. In addition, I encourage them to visit with their professors during office hours, go to the tutoring services, protect their GPA, join professional organizations, and visit with the travel abroad and career counseling departments. Most importantly, I strongly encourage all students to make an appointment with the mental health center on their campus if they are experiencing any feelings of hopelessness, anxiety, or depression. Meeting them without judgment is a priority with each meeting.
As a credentialed counselor, the mental health of all of our students is very important to me. According to the most recent Healthy Minds Institute data report from winter of 2021, 41% of college student respondents reported moderate or major depression, and 13% reported having had suicidal ideation in the previous year. I’ll ask our students direct questions about their relationships, “are they eating, exercising, or sleeping more or less than usual?”. I’m looking for any changes or early warning signs that something is off.
Balancing academics, living away from home for the first time, and meeting the demands of being a first-generation college student can be very overwhelming. Therefore, visiting our college students at their college and spending quality time with them gives me an opportunity to see first-hand how they are adjusting to living on campus, to assess their academic challenges and successes, and their mental health. It is an important touch point to provide support and direction to succeeding in their academics, maintaining a healthy mental health perspective, and encouraging them to use the career development and other resources on their campus.
As first-generation college students, our NPA students carry a tremendous personal and societal responsibility to succeed and graduate from college. Every institution of higher education has expectations; however, first-gen students are not aware of these implicit expectations. They know I believe in them and it is my goal to make them aware of these expectations.
Source: healthymindsnetwork.org
