Enhance student wellness at your school by addressing these 4 health concerns

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Student wellness is an integral part of the college experience. When students practice healthy habits, they are in a better position to thrive academically and graduate. Plus, studies show that healthy behaviors formed during the college years tend to endure throughout life. This puts college administrators in a unique position to positively influence student health and wellness throughout college and beyond.

What wellness topics matter most to college students?

You may wonder what health and wellness topics college students are most concerned about. A 2019 study in the Journal of American College Health answers this question. Researchers from the University of Massachusetts conducted a needs assessment among a racially diverse group of students representing all undergraduate academic years. They wanted to know the self-perceived wellness-related concerns and behaviors of college students.

In their focus groups, they found four major areas that garnered the greatest engagement: nutrition, mental health, economics, and campus safety.

  • Nutrition topics that students were most concerned with were special diets, variety and quality of food, and food insecurity, particularly in relation to on-campus food services. Students want more options for special diets, such as gluten-free and vegetarian, and they want more fresh and healthy options. Many also acknowledged that some of their peers skip meals due to affordability.

  • Mental health is another wellness topic that matters to college students. Many feel that they face barriers to accessing mental health care—specifically support for anxiety and depression.

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  • Economic factors that concerned students the most included academic expenses as well as the costs associated with housing, transportation, and childcare.

  • Campus safety concerns include students’ lack of knowledge of how to make safe and informed decisions about substance use and sexual health. Many also did not know what campus services were available and the roles each played, such as the Campus Police and Title IX Coordinators.

Student-proposed solutions

Students provided several suggestions that schools can realistically implement to help address their wellness concerns. Recommendations included:

  • Wellness-related advertisements (e.g., health messaging via a smartphone app and flyers posted in restrooms) 
  • Educational sessions available during convenient times
  • Expansion of programs that are already available to them.

As college administrators, it’s encouraging to know that students care about their health—and that the wellness interventions they suggested are realistic. “Colleges can successfully address priority health issues and develop solutions that are feasible and most likely to be utilized by students, when student input is sought and valued,” say the study authors. 

Expand health promotion at your school with CampusWell

CampusWell is proud to work with our client schools to ensure that students can access high-quality health resources that align with their main concerns and the solutions they most want to see. Our primary goal is to help schools positively impact students’ success and wellness by supporting their knowledge, skills, and behaviors. 

Relatable student wellness articles are available 24/7 via the CampusWell website and mobile app. We also provide posters, flyers, and digital slideshows that can be displayed around campus or shared online, inviting students to engage with the wellness issues that are most important to them during their daily comings and goings. Our weekly content covers a wide range of topics including:
  • Affordable healthy eating (including recipes with vegetarian and vegan options)
  • Mental health (e.g., forming positive relationships, stress and anxiety relief, mindfulness) 
  • Financial wellness (e.g., budgeting, paying off student loans)
  • Substance use (e.g., vaping, alcohol harm reduction)
  • Sexual health (e.g., consent, safer sex practices)

A school-wide subscription to CampusWell goes beyond the content we provide. It allows your student affairs departments, such as your Health and Career Centers, Dining Services, Financial Aid Office, and Title IX Coordinator, to each have their own page on the student-focused platform. This can help keep students informed of news and updates, and direct them to available resources when they need them.

CampusWell is a versatile platform that helps make a multi-departmental wellness initiative simple, sustainable, and engaging. Using technology, high quality, research-based content, and proven marketing strategies, together with your existing assets, we deliver a campus-wide wellness platform that will positively impact your students and institution.

Sources

Quinn, B., El Ghaziri, M., Mangano, K. M., & Thind, H. K. (2019). Toward total student health: A qualitative pilot study. Journal of American College Health, 67(5): 391-396, DOI: 10.1080/07448481.2018.1484365

Quinn, B., El Ghaziri, M., Mangano, K. M., & Thind, H. K. (2019). Toward total student health: A qualitative pilot study. Journal of American College Health, 67(5): 391-396, DOI: 10.1080/07448481.2018.1484365

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    Help your stressed students succeed using these ready-made mindfulness resources

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    Even before COVID-19, college students had been reporting increasing levels of anxiety year-after-year—and the pandemic has not helped. A 2020 survey by the American College Health Association found that between March and May, an even higher proportion of students reported that their mental health has negatively impacted their academic performance. 

    Now, more than ever, college students are looking to their schools to help them better manage stress and get through this tough time. Institutions can boost student success by understanding the benefits of mindfulness, providing convenient access to high-quality mindfulness and meditation resources, and encouraging students to make use of them.

    Benefits of mindfulness for college students

    Research has found that people with high levels of mindfulness report lower levels of anxiety. In fact, recent reviews show that mindfulness-based interventions can help to decrease stress and anxiety in college students. Some of these benefits include improved focus and academic abilities.

    Mindfulness means “maintaining a moment-by-moment awareness of our thoughts, feelings, bodily sensations, and surrounding environment, through a gentle, nurturing lens,” according to the Greater Good Science Center at the University of California, Berkeley. Mindfulness is paying attention to what’s around us and inside us, without judging whether it’s good, bad, right, or wrong.

    The practice of mindfulness can benefit your students by helping to reduce stress and anxiety which can bolster their success academically and personally.

    How to encourage mindfulness practices for your students

    When thinking about mindfulness, the most common practice that comes to mind is meditation. Guided mindfulness meditations can take many forms. They can be as short as one minute or much longer and in-depth. They can be held in-person or online (via live or prerecorded audio or video). 

    Beyond meditation, mindfulness can be practiced during everyday activities such as walking, eating, journaling, etc. Different types of mindfulness practices can easily be incorporated into a busy student’s day.

    By making mindfulness resources available to your students, and reminding them where and how to access them, you can help alleviate some of the stress and anxiety they are experiencing. Even better, by providing a variety of student-centered mindfulness options, you can allow your students to choose what type of practice and duration would benefit them at that moment.

    How CampusWell can improve your students’ well-being

    We want to make it as quick and easy as possible for you to provide practical and relatable mindfulness resources to your students. We currently feature monthly guided meditations created by experts specifically for students. Some recent meditations include guided imagery, gentle touch, and a hand washing meditation practice. 

    CampusWell can help you support your students beyond stress management and mindfulness. We provide fitness videos, recipes, and a wide variety of wellness content that students can use to improve their everyday lives. In our view, student health and wellness is multi-dimensional, touching every aspect of a student’s life—from their emotional and physical well-being to their spiritual, environmental, and even financial wellness. With a school-wide subscription, each week we help you provide your students with engaging content to help you support your students’ success in all areas of their lives.

    In addition to the science-backed wellness content we provide, you can use our customizable online platform to effectively communicate with your students about academic resources, services, and events at your school—whether they’re accessing it on campus or from home.

    CampusWell is a versatile platform that helps make a multi-departmental wellness initiative simple, sustainable, and engaging. Using technology, high quality, research-based content, and proven marketing strategies, together with your existing assets, we deliver a campus-wide wellness platform that will positively impact your students and institution.

    American College Health Association. (2020). The impact of COVID-19 on college student well-being. Retrieved from https://www.acha.org/documents/ncha/Healthy_Minds_NCHA_COVID_Survey_Report_FINAL.pdf

    Bamber, M. D., & Morpeth, E. (2019). Effects of mindfulness meditation on college student anxiety: a meta-analysis. Mindfulness 10, 203–214. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12671-018-0965-5

    Bamber, M. D., & Schneider, J. K. (2020). College students’ perceptions of mindfulness-based interventions: A narrative review of the qualitative research. Current Psychology.  https://doi.org/10.1007/s12144-019-00592-4

    CampusWell. (2018, October 11). How to make everyday life more mindful for yourself and your students. Retrieved from https://default.campuswell.com/student-advocate-make-everyday-life-more-mindful/

    Greater Good Science Center. (n.d.) What is mindfulness? Retrieved from https://greatergood.berkeley.edu/topic/mindfulness/definition

    Sources

    Holt, E. W., Lombard, Q. K., Best, N., Smiley-Smith, S., & Quinn, J. E. (2019). Active and passive use of green space, health, and well-being amongst university students. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 16(3), 424. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph16030424

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      6 ways to set your students up for distance learning success

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      While some of your students may find online learning convenient and flexible, others may be struggling. The challenges of academic success aren’t new to students, and studying at home can lead to additional concerns.

      For example, some students may not have enough space or quiet to focus on their material. Others may be facing increased financial challenges or significant responsibilities at home—and these may be over and above the systemic barriers regularly faced by Black, indigenous, and students of color. Many college students long to return to the in-person, hands-on learning educational environment that is now, unfortunately, limited due to the pandemic.

      According to EducationData, as of June 2020, 97 percent of college students switched to online instruction due to COVID-19 and 63 percent indicated that the online instruction they received was worse than in-person instruction.

      Distance learning can be difficult for even the most well-equipped instructors and students. Your students’ struggles are an opportunity for you to support them in new ways to help them realize their goals of graduating from your institution. Here are several opportunities to set your students up for academic success and keep them motivated and on-track through distance learning.

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      97 percent of college students switched to online instruction due to COVID-19

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      63 percent indicated that the online instruction they received was worse than in-person instruction

      Students who study from home may need additional reminders and motivation to prioritize their academic work—especially when they’re not on campus surrounded by others invested in higher education. As a school administrator, you can send regular messages that encourage students to stay in touch with faculty, engage with online study partners or groups, and use proven study methods such as time management, time blocking, and metacognition.

      Students who are off-campus are not easily able to go to the library or attend in-person tutorials or office hours. Making as many of these resources available online 24/7 will help your students access them whenever and wherever they are studying.

      When new resources become available online, be sure to announce them to students. Include library services, student affairs departments, and academic materials. If some well-established resources are being underutilized, announce reminders that they’re still available and how they can be used in a remote setting.

      Create a web page that serves as your primary directory of online resources. The directory can consist of links as well as instructions on how students can access them. Feature your resource directory by prominently displaying it on your student-facing web pages as an option in your main menu and a clickable image on your welcome page.

      Students may not be familiar with—or may forget about—events and appointments that you offer to help them with their studies. By posting calendars of upcoming events and available appointments, students can be made aware of them in advance and can choose dates and times that work for them. Including automated reminders will help busy or distracted students miss fewer opportunities to get the support they need.

      CampusWell provides many avenues for each of your departments to effectively reach distance learning students online. We can provide your institution with a school-branded website to help students find the study resources and directories mentioned above, as well as your calendar, announcements, and reminders to help keep students up-to-date and motivated to study. A custom content feed can also be embedded into your current school website or learning management system. 

      In addition to CampusWell’s online communication platform, we provide featured content on your behalf to support your students’ academic success. Our evidence-based articles cover topics such as time management, studying, test taking, and mental health.

      CampusWell is a versatile platform that helps make a multi-departmental wellness initiative simple, sustainable, and engaging. Using technology, high quality, research-based content, and proven marketing strategies, together with your existing assets, we deliver a campus-wide wellness platform that will positively impact your students and institution.

      Sources

      CampusWell. (2017, November 1). Metacognition: A key to helping students study more effectively. https://default.campuswell.com/student-advocate-metacognition/

      CampusWell. (2018, October 3). How to set your students up for studying success. https://default.campuswell.com/student-advocate-study-methods-that-actually-work/

      Education Data. (2020, June). Online eduction statistics. https://educationdata.org/online-education-statistics/

      CampusWell. (2017, November 1). Metacognition: A key to helping students study more effectively. https://default.campuswell.com/student-advocate-metacognition/

      CampusWell. (2018, October 3). How to set your students up for studying success. https://default.campuswell.com/student-advocate-study-methods-that-actually-work/

      Education Data. (2020, June). Online eduction statistics. https://educationdata.org/online-education-statistics/

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        Make your health promotion efforts work—even at a distance

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        Students often know what they should do when it comes to healthy habits. They want to reap the benefits of eating five daily servings of fruit and vegetables, sleeping 7-9 hours each night, and exercising for 150 minutes each week. However, behavior change is difficult—for all of us. 

        Studies suggest that between the ages of 18 and 25 is a critical time for young adults to change their attitudes and create new habits. Recent research shows that colleges can support student health and wellness with health promotion programs to assist behavior change during these years. 

        College health promotion programs can lead to student health behavior change

        A 2020 study published in the Journal of Primary Prevention found that dramatic changes emerged in student health behaviors when a health behavior change program was implemented by schools. Results were documented for several objective indicators including fruit and vegetable consumption, sleep quantity, and exercise. In addition, students self-reported beneficial outcomes, such as:

        • Sleep quality
        • Flexibility
        • Improved mood
        • Reduced loneliness
        • More satisfaction with their relationships
        • Feeling better about their overall health

        You have an opportunity to help students create healthy habits that can serve them throughout their academic careers at your institution and beyond.

        While the health promotion program in this study was delivered in a classroom setting, the reality today is that many schools are engaged in distance learning and more students are taking online classes than ever before.

        CampusWell’s online platform makes health promotion easy

        CampusWell is in a unique position to be the linchpin of health promotion at your school. We can assist you in supporting your students’ desire to achieve their healthy habit goals using our exclusive, easy-to-implement online platform. Our weekly, student-centered content covers a range of wellness topics including: 

        Nutrition

        (e.g., plant-based recipes, mindful eating)

        Sleep

        (e.g., sleep hygiene habits, recommended sleep apps)

        Exercise

        (e.g., workout videos, fitness tips for beginners)

        We also provide engaging and relatable resources to help students in other areas that directly support their wellness, such as how to manage stress, improve study habits, create a more inclusive campus, and communicate better with friends, partners, and potential employers. All of our content is searchable and categorized by topic so students can focus on changing one behavior at a time—whether that’s quitting vaping, practicing meditation, or working on their time management skills.

        With the CampusWell Multi-department option, your health services, counseling, athletics, and other departments can each have customized pages to share updates and communicate their own content with students wherever they are located.

        CampusWell is a versatile platform that helps make a multi-departmental wellness initiative simple, sustainable, and engaging. Using technology, high quality, research-based content, and proven marketing strategies, together with your existing assets, we deliver a campus-wide wellness platform that will positively impact your students and institution.

        Sources

        Arnett, J. J. (2000). Emerging adulthood. A theory of development from the late teens through the twenties. The American Psychologist, 55(5), 469-80. https://doi.org/10.1037//0003-066X.55.5.469

        Wright, R. R., Nelson, R., Garcia, S. et al. (2020). Health behavior change in the classroom: A means to a healthy end?. Journal of Primary Prevention, 41, 445–472. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10935-020-00605-0

        Arnett, J. J. (2000). Emerging adulthood. A theory of development from the late teens through the twenties. The American Psychologist, 55(5), 469-80. https://doi.org/10.1037//0003-066X.55.5.469

        Wright, R. R., Nelson, R., Garcia, S. et al. (2020). Health behavior change in the classroom: A means to a healthy end?. Journal of Primary Prevention, 41, 445–472. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10935-020-00605-0

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          Help lower student stress by promoting use of green spaces

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          Students are under a lot of stress right now, which can hinder academic achievement and graduation rates. College administrators can help their students tackle stress by providing resources and support for them to be more mindful, get better sleep, and choose healthier foods. One lesser known—but scientifically backed—way to help reduce student stress? Encourage them to be more physically active in green spaces (e.g., parks, trails, gardens, tree-lined paths).

          Green spaces can make us feel better, have a more positive outlook, and even improve our health and well-being. This has been documented in various studies of people who live close to parks and woodlands, have views of nature from their windows, and those who frequently spend time in natural areas. New research suggests that university students who actively use green spaces experience reduced stress, improved moods, and have a higher quality of life. 

          How does spending time in green spaces affect student wellness?

          A 2019 study in the International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health surveyed hundreds of students to answer this question.

          Perhaps not surprisingly, students who frequent green spaces report better indicators of health and wellness, such as a higher quality of life, better moods, and lower stress. This was particularly true for students who used green spaces for physical activity (e.g., running, hiking, biking), moreso than those who used green spaces passively (e.g., sitting, studying, relaxing).

          There are several ways that being active in a natural environment can help improve student health and well-being.

          • Green spaces provide an environment that encourages social interactions and community cohesion, which are vital for mental health. 
          • Being immersed in nature can reduce exposure to some everyday stressors and promote restoration (recovery from the cognitive fatigue arising from daily stressors). 
          • Physical activity can improve both physiological and psychological health

          Encourage students to actively use green spaces with CampusWell

          Imagine being able to improve student health and well-being simply by encouraging them to use green spaces that are available to them (wherever they’re currently residing). This may seem simple, but one of the reasons students gave for not being active in green spaces is that they were not aware of on-campus or off-campus opportunities to do so. 

          “Administrators, faculty, and student life staff could facilitate green space use via a variety of university programming options: campus wellness programs can build familiarity by guiding students through available walking/running trails, and promote their use for stress reduction activities,” say the study authors.

          If students aren’t currently on campus, administrators can still guide them on the importance of being active in green spaces and how to locate them in their community. 

          CampusWell’s goal is to partner with schools to help administrators improve academic achievement and retention by supporting student wellness. Our engaging, student-centered content can inspire your students to mange their stress in many ways, including via outdoor workouts and strategies for staying safe and active in all seasons. We also provide relatable resources to help students in other areas, such as how to study more effectively, become more mindful, have healthier relationships, and improve their financial knowledge and skills. 

          Plus, with the customizable CampusWell platform, your environmental, sustainability, athletics (and all) departments can communicate directly with students to provide them updates and ideas to enjoy—and benefit from—the great outdoors.

           Learn more here or set up a demonstration to see how CampusWell can benefit your school.

          Holt, E. W., Lombard, Q. K., Best, N., Smiley-Smith, S., & Quinn, J. E. (2019). Active and passive use of green space, health, and well-being amongst university students. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 16(3), 424. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph16030424

          Sources

          Holt, E. W., Lombard, Q. K., Best, N., Smiley-Smith, S., & Quinn, J. E. (2019). Active and passive use of green space, health, and well-being amongst university students. International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health, 16(3), 424. https://doi.org/10.3390/ijerph16030424

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            How to create an inclusive campus for your transgender students—and why that matters

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            What’s the first step to creating a more inclusive campus environment? It starts with listening and learning. When a non-binary student at Arkansas Tech University received an email from their school featuring a CampusWell article on gender identity, it had a big impact on how accepted they felt on campus.

            What’s the first step to creating a more inclusive campus environment? It starts with listening and learning. When a non-binary student at Arkansas Tech University received an email from their school featuring a CampusWell article on gender identity, it had a big impact on how accepted they felt on campus.

            “The article on transgender and gender non-conforming people really made me aware that there are many more like me within my community, and that I can help them out by acting as an ally out in the open,” the student said (who chose to remain anonymous). “Seeing my school sending out this article made me feel a lot more secure in myself and in my school community.”

            A safe and inclusive school environment is crucial—not only for the mental and physical well being of its marginalized communities—but also for their academic success and retention. Nationwide surveys of LGBTQ and transgender youth and adults have found the following:

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            24% of transgender adults report being physically, verbally, or sexually harassed while in college. Sixteen percent of those said they left college because of the harassment.

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            60% of LGBTQ youth (ages 13-21) reported feeling unsafe at school and 44% said it was because of their gender expression.

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            35% of transgender individuals who attended higher education of some kind experienced barriers such as harassment and financial issues, which in some cases forced them to leave.

            CampusWell strives to help schools provide safe, inclusive environments by publishing articles specifically for marginalized students written by members of those communities. Part of that goal involves putting marginalized groups in the spotlight in an effort to break down stigma and prejudice, while also teaching students from majority populations how they can be better allies.

            “If more people were outspoken about the topic [of gender nonconformity], the community would be a more compassionate and caring place,” the ATU student added. “I think that any kind of educational articles about [marginalized] groups and their struggles can help them better exist within society. And CampusWell really knows their demographic, so it’s a lot more intuitive for students than reading articles from elsewhere. The information in the articles is high quality.”

            Actions may speak louder than words, but when it comes to supporting students within marginalized communities, receiving school-backed content that speaks to them directly  is a way to help them feel safe, celebrated, accepted, and understood. Find out more about how your school can use CampusWell as a tool in the fight for equality.

            Sources

            Goldberg, A. (2018, August). Transgender students in higher education. UCLA School of Law. https://williamsinstitute.law.ucla.edu/publications/trans-students-higher-education/

            Kosciw, J., Greytak, E., Zongrone, A., et al. (2017). The 2017 national school climate survey: The experiences of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer youth in our nation’s schools. GLSEN. https://www.glsen.org/sites/default/files/2019-10/GLSEN-2017-National-School-Climate-Survey-NSCS-Full-Report.pdf

            Goldberg, A. (2018, August). Transgender students in higher education. UCLA School of Law. https://williamsinstitute.law.ucla.edu/publications/trans-students-higher-education/

            Kosciw, J., Greytak, E., Zongrone, A., et al. (2017). The 2017 national school climate survey: The experiences of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer youth in our nation’s schools. GLSEN. https://www.glsen.org/sites/default/files/2019-10/GLSEN-2017-National-School-Climate-Survey-NSCS-Full-Report.pdf

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              Time management: How CampusWell helped this student optimize his busy schedule

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              Students learn plenty in school, but one crucial skill that generally isn’t part of the curriculum also happens to be one of the most useful for academic success: how to manage their time. With assignments, extra-curricular activities, and even work in some cases, it’s a given that students are busy. The key to juggling multiple responsibilities is proper planning, as Matt Hurd, a student at Wilmington University in New Castle, Delaware, learned with a little help from CampusWell.

              “As far as time management goes, I’m working full-time and going to school, so scheduling is important to avoid stress. There are a couple CampusWell articles that helped me a lot,” says Hurd. “I learned the importance of making a visual schedule [i.e. displayed somewhere you’ll see often], and also of scheduling time for yourself—for things that benefit you personally rather than just school and work tasks. I can counteract stress and anxiety by making time for exercise and things that make me happy.”

              Hurd’s calendar may be full, but he’s learned some expert tips for getting everything crossed off his to-do list.

              “It’s about being in the right physical space to be productive. I’m a teacher, so I’ll stay at work until I get a certain amount of my school work done, because the transition to home puts me into that ‘I don’t want to do anything’ mood,” says Hurd. “Also, one helpful tip I learned is to make sure your work area is clean, because it puts you in the right mindset to be successful. In terms of scheduling, I use the calendar on my phone constantly. I definitely recommend having an electronic calendar to keep track of all your to-do items for the day, week or month.”
              It might seem unrealistic to expect busy students to make time for self-improvement articles, but the solution is to pack research-backed information into short, skimmable pieces written in a tone that’s relatable. CampusWell’s editorial team strives to do just that.

              “The more condensed an article is, and the more information is packed into a shorter article, the more likely we [students] are to read it and collect that information. We all want to know this helpful information, but some of us—myself included, to be honest—are also looking for convenience.”  

              Scheduling and time management are just a couple of the targeted topics that CampusWell addresses in its content.

              “The topics CampusWell chooses are relevant and focused on people our age—issues like drinking, vaping, stress, and anxiety,” says Hurd. “For people like me that take a few minutes to read [the articles], it really does make a difference in terms of self-awareness and productivity.”

              CampusWell is a versatile platform that helps make a multi-departmental wellness initiative simple, sustainable, and engaging. Using technology, high quality, research-based content, and proven marketing strategies, together with your existing assets, we deliver a campus-wide wellness platform that will positively impact your students and institution.

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                Help your BIPOC students overcome barriers to their success

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                Wondering what you can do to help level the playing field for your BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, People of Color) students so that they can better thrive at college and beyond? Start by taking a look at your school’s role in the social determinants of health—factors such as access to health care services and health education, affordable nutritious foods, and social inclusion of marginalized groups. Your students’ well-being, educational attainment, and career success are all affected by these factors. Lowering the barriers to these social determinants is one big step in creating a more equitable school environment.

                Over the past decades, more and more BIPOC students are enrolling in degree programs. The proportion of students of color has grown across all types of institutions. The greatest increase is seen at minimally selective and open admission four-year schools. Black, Hispanic, Asian, and other students of color now account for almost half of the student body across all schools (Pew Research Center data). “It remains the case—as the data in this and other studies show—that race is a prevailing factor in many educational outcomes,” according to the American Council on Education. With Black students in particular, there are still substantial barriers in place that result in them having the highest undergraduate dropout rates.

                While systemic change often occurs slowly over time, there are many things you as a college administrator can do right now to improve the conditions in which your BIPOC students learn, live, play, and work to help them succeed at school and life.

                One example is the wellness programming you provide to your students. Wellness is about more than just physical and emotional health—it integrates all aspects of your students’ lives. This includes intellectual, occupational, social, financial, environmental, and spiritual wellness. You can provide your students with evidence-based information to build their confidence and skills in these areas and to continue overcoming and addressing many of the barriers that disproportionately affect students of color.

                CampusWell is proud to work with our client schools to ensure that all students can access the same high-quality science-backed wellness resources. Student-focused articles are available online 24/7 on topics such as affordable healthy eating, accessible fitness routines, sleep strategies, sexually transmitted infection prevention, and recommendations for health center visits. With your school-wide subscription, this information is available free of charge to all of your students. We also provide resources to enhance their social, mental, and spiritual health on topics including positive relationships, communication skills, stress relief, sexual consent, and mindfulness.

                Beyond physical and mental health resources, CampusWell can also help your school contribute to a culture of equity with our articles on intellectual, financial, and occupational wellness. Providing your students with strategies to better handle online learning, improve their financial literacy, manage their time more effectively, and ace their job interviews are regular themes in our publication.

                Our online platform also helps your school’s departments direct students to campus resources and safe spaces to seek guidance and support when they need it. These can include your Health Center, Diversity and Inclusion Office, Career Center, Financial Aid Office, Title IX Coordinator, and Disability Office.

                Our primary goal is to help schools positively impact their students’ success and wellness by supporting their knowledge, skills, and behaviors with our weekly content. By providing your students access to our evidence-based information from a diversity of voices, we are proud to help you promote a culture of equity and inclusion.

                At CampusWell, we too have a policy to represent diversity and amplify BIPOC voices and experiences in our publication. Our goal is to help you provide excellent resources and guidance to your students from all backgrounds so that they feel welcome and empowered. We can work together to help your students overcome obstacles to succeed in school and life.

                CampusWell is a versatile platform that helps make a multi-departmental wellness initiative simple, sustainable, and engaging. Using technology, high quality, research-based content, and proven marketing strategies, together with your existing assets, we deliver a campus-wide wellness platform that will positively impact your students and institution.

                Sources

                Espinosa, L., Turk, J., Taylor, M. & Chessman, H. (2019). Race and ethnicity in higher education: A status report. American Council on Education. Retrieved from https://www.equityinhighered.org/resources/report-downloads/

                Fry, R. & Cilluffo, A. (2019). A rising share of undergraduates are from poor families, especially at less selective colleges. Pew Research Center. Retrieved from https://www.pewsocialtrends.org/2019/05/22/a-rising-share-of-undergraduates-are-from-poor-families-especially-at-less-selective-colleges/

                Office of Disease Prevention and Health Promotion. (n.d.). Social determinants of health. Retrieved from https://www.healthypeople.gov/2020/topics-objectives/topic/social-determinants-of-health

                Espinosa, L., Turk, J., Taylor, M. & Chessman, H. (2019). Race and ethnicity in higher education: A status report. American Council on Education. Retrieved from https://www.equityinhighered.org/resources/report-downloads/

                Fry, R. & Cilluffo, A. (2019). A rising share of undergraduates are from poor families, especially at less selective colleges. Pew Research Center. Retrieved from https://www.pewsocialtrends.org/2019/05/22/a-rising-share-of-undergraduates-are-from-poor-families-especially-at-less-selective-colleges/

                Office of Disease Prevention and Health Promotion. (n.d.). Social determinants of health. Retrieved from https://www.healthypeople.gov/2020/topics-objectives/topic/social-determinants-of-health

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                  One simple CampusWell sleep article changed this student’s life

                  Reading Time: 2 minutes

                  With looming deadlines, family responsibilities, and social lives, most students would agree that there aren’t enough hours in the day to fit in all that needs to get done. To cross everything off the to-do list, many become night owls and consistently cut into their sleep.

                  “Sleep is something I’ve struggled with because I got accustomed to staying up late at night, and I’m not really a morning person,” says Carolyn Feyling, a senior at Shasta College in Redding, California. “But after having kids and adjusting my schedule because of school, I don’t have a choice anymore.”

                  While a couple late nights aren’t going to throw off someone’s overall well-being, chronic sleep deprivation is a serious issue because it can affect mental ability and energy levels all day long. In other words, students might be staying up late to study, but when it comes time to take the exam, their memory and performance won’t be up to par if they’ve been skimping on sleep.

                  “The way the [CampusWell] sleep article was worded just clicked in my brain,” says Feyling. “When you’re trying to change your sleep schedule, it’s not about drastic changes but about making incremental changes—so something as simple as moving your bedtime 10, 15, or 30 minutes each night toward the ideal time you’d want to wind down. That way, you can wake up earlier and feel so much more refreshed.”

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                  Tried-and-tested solutions like incremental bedtime adjustment are simple and easy to remember for busy students. Many simply don’t have the time to research topics like sleep, so it’s crucial that articles are informative but never overwhelming.

                  I drink my coffee while I look through the e-newsletter articles. That’s how simple of a read it is.

                  CAROLYN FEYLING
                  SHASTA COLLEGE

                  “I like how the articles introduce a topic, give a few tidbits that are easy to remember, and plant a seed for readers to roll with. It’s not information overload—it’s always just the right amount,” says Feyling.

                  Simple can sometimes be incredibly effective, as proven by the benefits Feyling is enjoying since getting accustomed to her new (much earlier) bedtime.

                  “I adjusted my bedtime over about a week of increments, and then I slowly found myself having more energy to focus on daily tasks and my studies,” she says. “Plus, I can physically do more, so I’m staying more active and being consistent with that. It really helped.”

                  CampusWell is a versatile platform that helps make a multi-departmental wellness initiative simple, sustainable, and engaging. Using technology, high quality, research-based content, and proven marketing strategies, together with your existing assets, we deliver a campus-wide wellness platform that will positively impact your students and institution.

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                    Limited resources? Michigan Tech makes it work with help from CampusWell

                    Reading Time: 3 minutes

                    Like many universities, Michigan Technological University is tight on resources. Even with a strong commitment to improving student health and wellness, budget restraints can pose a challenge.

                    “Here in Michigan, we’re in a remote area, so we don’t have a lot of health resources specifically for our students,” says Whitney Boroski, manager of Student Health and Wellness at the university. “The community resources we have for our general population are already overloaded and we don’t have an affiliated student health center.”

                    Recognizing the importance of awareness and prevention when it comes to keeping students safe in the face of issues like depression, substance abuse, and sexual assault, university administrators at Michigan Tech made the choice to begin working with CampusWell (then Student Health 101) in 2013.

                    “We weren’t hitting our student health mandates, and we realized that it would check off some of our compliances—making sure that our alcohol and drug policy is shared with all students, for instance,” says Boroski. “Another issue is that our students aren’t sleeping, so that’s not a compliance topic, but it’s an important one.”

                    Multiple formats to reach your students on- and off-campus

                    Michigan Tech students are offered CampusWell content in several mediums. At the library, student volunteers hand out printed flyers as a way of engaging with their peers one-on-one.

                    “We had winter carnival coming up and that’s a heavy drinking time. Our binge drinking rates are high, and it’s very cold, so it’s high risk,” explains Boroski. “I printed out some of the pre-made content from the [CampusWell] resources on alcohol. They were perfect!”

                    In addition to printable materials, televisions around campus display sleek, pre-made slideshows promoting health messaging, and the CampusWell app makes crucial health and wellness resources available to students whenever they need them—whether on- or off-campus.

                    Many schools remain uncertain about whether they will return to campus in the fall or even the spring, which has made CampusWell’s customizable online platform more essential than ever for engaging students remotely.

                    Relevant and relatable wellness content

                    When it comes to student health content, a major success factor is not just about when and how it’s shared, but the content itself.

                    CampusWell has these great articles with timely messages, written specifically for students with student commentary. It’s invaluable.

                    Whitney Boroski
                    Manager of Student Health and Wellness, Michigan Technological University

                    “We have these administrators sitting around a table trying to figure out what to do about, say, binge drinking, but we haven’t been in that position in forever. I’m not a student anymore. We don’t know what they should be doing or what prevention looks like,” says Boroski. “CampusWell has these great articles with timely messages, written specifically for students with student commentary. It’s invaluable.”

                    Boroski was “shocked” to find that large numbers of students are clicking through to CampusWell content from e-newsletters, even though most students claim they generally don’t check email. One popular topic? Cooking and nutrition.

                    “Our students don’t know how to grocery shop, meal prep, or cook. They always want more information on quick, cheap, and portable snacks and meals,” she adds. “The UCookbook series is exactly what we needed.”

                    Short on time? Let us do the heavy lifting

                    As a team of one, Boroski simply doesn’t have the time and resources to produce all the content she wants to be sharing with her students. With CampusWell, she can easily find the content needed to address real-life issues without delay.

                    “We don’t have a lot of time to be creative. We’re busy doing. When there’s a cold or flu going around in our residence houses, it’s easy for me to search the CampusWell archive for articles and information and send that out quickly.”

                    To help distribute CampusWell content, Boroski appointed a student from the university’s Exercise Science and Kinesiology department.

                    We don’t have a lot of time to be creative. We’re busy doingâ€Ķit’s easy for me to search the CampusWell archive for articles and information and send that out quickly.

                    Whitney Boroski
                    Manager of Student Health and Wellness, Michigan Technological University

                    Part of that role involves sharing blog posts on social media, which has shown impressive engagement. After all, for a tech university, the proof of CampusWell’s value is all in the numbers.

                    “When I can go to my supervisor and say ‘Hey, we had 3,000 students see this post on hand washing, or on better sleep,’ that is a real value that I can prove when the question of budget comes up,” says Boroski. “We don’t have a student health service, so we need something. I think if we didn’t, it would hurt our recruitment. I’m asked all the time: What’s our comprehensive care plan for our students? You better believe CampusWell is part of that.”

                    CampusWell is a versatile platform that helps make a multi-departmental wellness initiative simple, sustainable, and engaging. Using technology, high quality, research-based content, and proven marketing strategies, together with your existing assets, we deliver a campus-wide wellness platform that will positively impact your students and institution.

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                    Start promoting wellness on your campus today

                      3 powerful campus outreach strategies to engage your students remotely

                      Reading Time: 4 minutes

                      With in-person lectures, appointments, and workshops being suspended for the foreseeable future, it’s hard to know the best way to communicate with your students and keep them engaged. You may be wondering how to transition online with effective campus outreach strategies that can deliver updates and academic information, while at the same time provide your students with a sense of normalcy.

                      Imagine an online platform that: 

                      • Seamlessly and effectively communicates this critical content to your students. 
                      • Helps you reach more of your students by being visible where they spend most of their time online—on social media.
                      • Allows each department to easily publish, customize, and control their own content in whatever form best serves their messaging (e.g., videos, images, and/or blog posts). 

                      CampusWell delivers all of these conveniences and more in an easy to use, all-in-one platform.

                      “CampusWell has given our institution a way to share and organize information and resources, while also keeping our students connected with programs and offerings related to well-being across campus,” says Whitney Boroski, Manager of Student Health and Wellness at Michigan Technical University.

                      Here are three ways you can leverage CampusWell to effectively communicate critical information to your students while they are studying remotely.

                      1. Workshops and presentations

                      Use your branded website to post recorded workshops and presentations. Young people tend to prefer videos to text, so uploading videos on essential topics to your custom CampusWell site is a great way to provide resources to your students in a format that will grab their attention. The videos don’t have to be highly polished; they simply have to deliver the critical information. For example, student affairs departments and professors can record workshops and lectures, and then publish them on CampusWell to engage students remotely.

                      2. Images, posters, and slideshows

                      Do you have informational posters that you’d normally hang in residence halls, bathrooms, or other buildings around campus? What about slideshows for digital screens? With CampusWell, you can post all of these materials on your customized platform for students to see, just like they would if they were on campus.

                      3. Blog posts (with design support)

                      As a CampusWell client, you get our professionally written wellness articles, plus the option of publishing your own custom blog posts to help you stay connected with your students. Your content can come from multiple departments and cover a variety of topics, such as online events, important deadlines, and where students can turn for help.

                      You can publish an unlimited number of custom posts to your branded site. As a bonus, we will professionally design up to six of these for you each month so they’re attractive and appeal to your students. 

                      How to ensure your campus outreach strategy is effective

                      As your content is published and available online, you’ll need to reach out to your students so they are aware of it. Email can help you stay in touch, but it probably doesn’t surprise you that there are other, more engaging ways to connect with students—especially now when they are overwhelmed with online news and other distractions flooding their inboxes.

                      Content integration

                      CampusWell can help add your content to various web properties like CampusLabs, the school intranet or learning management system, or various department web pages for increased visibility.

                      Social media

                      CampusWell can also integrate your content into your students’ Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, and Snapchat feeds so you can leverage these platforms for even more effective campus outreach. A recent study in the Proceedings of the American Society for Information Science and Technology found that a large proportion of college students—64 percent—passively acquire health information on the web more than once a month. We can help you use this opportunity to share information with more of your students remotely.

                      Paid ads

                      Having social media as part of your communication strategy helps you reach more students and bring them to your content. However, there are algorithms that place limits on how many people see certain social media posts. Inexpensive paid ads provide an even more powerful way to connect with your students. Whether they are on Instagram or Snapchat, we can help ensure your content reaches students on social media using cutting-edge technology based on IP addresses.

                      CampusWell makes campus outreach during these unprecedented times simple, effective, and sustainable. Our versatile online platform helps you connect with your students and create a sense of community, even when everyone is working and studying remotely. Now you can have your workshops, presentations, posters, and blog posts all in one place, so nothing gets lost in the inbox. Learn more here or set up a demonstration to see how CampusWell can benefit your school.

                      Basic, J. and Erdelez, S. (2014). Active and passive acquisition of health‐related information on the Web by college students. Proceedings of the American Society for Information Science and Technology, 51: 1-5. doi:10.1002/meet.2014.14505101149

                      Sources

                      Basic, J. and Erdelez, S. (2014). Active and passive acquisition of health‐related information on the Web by college students. Proceedings of the American Society for Information Science and Technology, 51: 1-5. doi:10.1002/meet.2014.14505101149

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                        What you can do to support your students through the pandemic and beyond

                        Reading Time: 3 minutes

                        The coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic is affecting everyone. With campuses closing and shifting to online learning in record time—for an unknown duration—many students are missing their friends and professors, opportunities to study abroad, and even their graduation.

                        You’re likely concerned with how your students are responding to this unprecedented crisis and may be wondering what you can do to better support their wellbeing.

                        How college students are responding

                        While many students are volunteering and doing what they can to help, most are finding this sudden and unexpected shift in their lives megaphone icondifficult to navigate. They are transitioning to learning online and missing hands-on learning experiences. They may be struggling to maintain healthy lifestyles while being stuck inside their homes and frustrated with their sudden lack of freedom. Many have moved back home and are facing additional social and relationship challenges there. These changes have happened so quickly that college students are understandably feeling a growing sense of stress and overwhelm.

                        Students need trustworthy, relatable resources—now more than ever

                        Never has there been a greater need for accurate and practical information for your students. They see confusing and contradictory messages on social media on how to protect themselves and others from COVID-19. Many are seeking effective strategies to learn online, protect their mental health, and navigate relationship changes mandated by physical distancing. Unable to visit the campus gym or dining halls, students would also benefit from simple, nutritious recipes and guided fitness videos for at-home workouts.

                        During these stressful times, we want to encourage behaviors that will help students prevent the spread of COVID-19 while staying physically and mentally well, and able to continue their education. CampusWell is known for providing effective education for students verified site iconusing science-backed articles on intellectual, physical, social, and emotional wellness. Our articles are written with original input from subject matter experts and cover a range of topics to help guide your students through the pandemic and beyond, such as:

                        • Successfully completing online studies
                        • Affordable and healthy recipes
                        • Small-space fitness routines
                        • Mindfulness and stress reduction
                        • Navigating relationship difficulties
                        In light of the pandemic, we have also created timely content about COVID-19 to help your students learn practical ways to protect themselves and others based on the latest medical advice, as well as relatable tips on adjusting to day-to-day life under these new conditions. Our customizable online platform is available to your students 24/7 on any device.

                        CampusWell can play an essential role in your students’ ability to get through these unprecedented times. Learn more here or set up a demonstration to see how CampusWell can benefit your school.

                        Sources

                        Krieger, P. & Goodnough, A. (2020, March 23). Medical students, sidelined for now, find new ways to fight coronavirus. The New York Times. Retrieved from https://www.nytimes.com/2020/03/23/health/medical-students-coronavirus.html

                        Krieger, P. & Goodnough, A. (2020, March 23). Medical students, sidelined for now, find new ways to fight coronavirus. The New York Times. Retrieved from https://www.nytimes.com/2020/03/23/health/medical-students-coronavirus.html

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                        Start promoting wellness on your campus today