Hillels Play Key Role for Students’ Emotional Health

This fall, college students here in New York and around the country will enter a time of new possibilities, new studies, new friends - and also many changes.

"People in this age group are at a time of transition, and a lot of expectations," said Amy Posner, executive director of Hillel at the College of Staten Island, part of Hillel: The Foundation for Jewish Campus Life, a beneficiary agency of UJA-Federation of New York. "One day they're a kid whose parents take care of them, the next they're at college and have to find their own way."

Times of transition can be fragile, she added. "We at Hillel want students to know that people care about them, and that we're here to help."

She joined more than 60 other campus administrators who, together with staff from 10 Hillels at New York-area colleges, attended a mental health training program for campus professionals held at UJA-Federation on August 3rd. The Jed Foundation provided the training, which was funded by UJA-Federation.

"The training was supported by UJA-Federation's Caring Commission, as we believe the mental-health needs of Jewish college-age students are a priority to address," said Roberta Leiner, managing director of the Caring Commission. "We believe that working with Hillels as gatekeepers to Jewish students on college campuses is an all-important vehicle to identify and support students under stress."

Why Hillels Can Help

Hillel's supportive role is especially important because, according to a recent survey, when students are in emotional distress, they are more likely to seek help from religious leaders than "school counselors, private therapists, crisis hotlines, residential assistants, and faculty." The survey was released by the Jed Foundation, mtvU, and the Associated Press in 2009.

"You're really in a role where you're the most likely person to talk about these issues," said Courtney Knowles, executive director of the Jed Foundation.

Phil Satow, board president of the foundation, which he started with his wife after they lost their son Jed to suicide, said "It's hard to get students themselves, or their friends, or their parents to admit a student is having trouble, or to even know if it's typical behavior."

"You are someone who interacts with students on a regular basis who could potentially influence students one way or another," Satow said. "That's why this training is so important: you'll come away with resources to identify something is trouble or typical, and also what to do about it."

Knowles noted that it's important for campus professionals to be aware of and talk about mental-health issues like depression and anxiety because college years coincide with the age when symptoms often begin to show up.

Many of the warning signs indicating an emotional-health problem are changes in behavior, especially affecting sleep and appetite, he said.

For Matthew Vogel, executive director of Hillel at Baruch, also a part of Hillel: The Foundation for Jewish Campus Life, the training offered additional skills he can draw on in his work with students.

"I often have meaningful conversations with students about Jewish identity, but this training helps me think about students in a more holistic way," he explained.

Suicide Prevention

The event also provided training in suicide prevention to help Hillel professionals learn how to assess if a student is at risk, and how to make referrals to a mental-health counselor.

"The number-one myth about suicide is that asking someone about it will cause it. All research shows that it will not cause it," said Chaim Nissel, director of the counseling center and suicide prevention coordinator at Yeshiva University and a member of the training panel.

"In fact, talking about suicide can help prevent it," he said. "Asking about it shows it's O.K. to talk about it - and there are ways to ask: Are you having thoughts about ending your life? Are you having any thoughts of doing anything to harm or kill yourself?"

Nissel, who is also a trainer for the American Association of Suicidology, added, "Someone who is thinking about suicide is generally ambivalent. Offering to get someone the help they need can be lifesaving."

More Outreach Planned

"The training is just the beginning, as we hope to continue to marry the mental-health resources of our beneficiary agencies," Leiner noted.

The Jewish Board of Family and Children's Services, a UJA-Federation beneficiary agency that runs 14 mental-health clinics throughout New York City, together with the Jed Foundation will run a focus group with the training participants later this fall. The goal is to understand how Hillels have put into practice what they learned about the training when they started seeing students, and how to further support their efforts.