Reporter Trip Gabriel writes:
On Monday and Tuesday, the start of a stressful exam week before spring break, professors interrupted classes to tell students they cared for them not just academically, but personally. Both days, the university president, Dr. David J. Skorton, took out a full-page ad in the campus paper, The Cornell Daily Sun, saying: “Your well-being is the foundation on which your success is built. If you learn anything at Cornell, please learn to ask for help.”Cornell is encouraging students to ask for help, but they've also been working for a long time on mental health outreach to students.
Cornell’s mental health outreach in recent years, which has attracted national attention, is intended to bring students who are at risk, and who might not seek help, into counseling. Custodians are trained to look for signs of emotional trouble when cleaning out dorms; therapists hold open-door hours at 10 campus locations; and a faculty handbook advises professors about how to spot students’ distress in its many contemporary forms, from disturbing artwork to clothes that disguise self-mutilation.This article has generated a lot of conversation among readers of the New York Times, with over 250 comments as of today. Though the internet allows for many readers to remain anonymous, several of these comments show the willingness of readers to share their experiences with suicide. Many of us have a lot of ideas about suicide and not only are we willing to talk about them, but we want to talk about them to. This underscores how important it is to talk about suicide, when we're feeling suicidal or think someone we know might be, and even when we're not feeling suicidal at all. Brian, a CONTACT Pittsburgh Intern and student at the University of Pittsburgh, wrote about this earlier in the month.
You can read the complete New York Times article here. Our thoughts are with the friends and families of these students.
-Kate
