105th chat, Tuesday May 8 2018: student wellness
6 pm Pacific / 7 pm Mountain / 8 pm Central / 9 pm Eastern
moderated by @midnorthwest @beastlibrarian @hailthefargoats
Wakelet (compilation of tweets) (pdf) by @violetbfox
Students are under enormous pressure to perform well in college. In addition, systemic injustice is playing out on college campuses through income inequality, racism, sexism, xenophobia, and other –isms that directly and indirectly impact students. Given that libraries are not neutral, what obligation does the library have to address the secondary symptoms of trauma and injustice—anxiety, depression, stress, and feeling overwhelmed or hopeless? This #critlib chat will focus on student wellness in the academic library.
For this conversation, we are adapting the World Health Organization’s definition of health to define student wellness. Student wellness is defined as both freedom from physical, mental, and emotional malaise, and the capacity to take appropriate measures to address the challenges of being a student in this current sociocultural, economic and political moment.
Suggested readings
- American College Health Association National College Health Assessment (2017), “Fall 2017 Reference Group Executive Summary.”
- Grajfoner, D., Harte, E., Potter, L. M., & McGuigan, N. (2017). The effect of dog-assisted intervention on student well-being, mood, and anxiety. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health 14(5), 483.
- Hallyburton, A., Kolenbrander N., & C. Robertson (2008). “College Health Professionals and Academic Librarians: Collaboration for student health.” Journal Of American College Health 56(4), 395-400.
- Meyers-Martin, C., & L. Borchard (2017). The finals stretch: Exams week library outreach surveyed. Reference Services Review 43(4), 510-532.
- Reynolds, J. & Rabschutz, L. (2011). Studying for Exams Just Got More Relaxing—Animal-Assisted Activities at the University of Connecticut Library. College & Undergraduate Libraries 4, 359-67.
- Rose, C., Godfrey, K., & K. Rose (2015). Supporting student wellness: De-stressing initiatives at memorial university libraries. Partnership : The Canadian Journal of Library and Information Practice and Research, 10(2), 1-21.
Discussion questions
- Q1. What do you consider to be the primary student wellness need for students on your campus?
- Q2. What populations are often overlooked in conversations about student wellness?
- Q3. What is something you find frustrating about how student wellness is discussed (or not discussed) on your campus or at your library?
- Q4. Should librarians be trained to support student wellness? Alternatively, should libraries make student wellness a priority?
- Q5. What do you do (or plan to do) to support student wellness on your campus?