Health and Wellness FAQs
If you have questions not on the list, please refer to the Health and Wellness section of the Student Life website or email [email]parents@hmc.edu[/email].
Do you have a means for students to anonymously share the names of students of concern? What is the process in place for approaching students of concern?
HMC has a resource called Mudders Care for Mudders. If you are concerned about a student or community member, we encourage you to notify the HMC Care Team by making a referral via the form linked above. You may submit a concern either anonymously or you can share your name and the HMC Care Team will follow up with the concern. The Care Team’s collaboration with you and their efforts to support community members is kept private and will not be shared with fellow students, parents, staff, or faculty without your permission or a legitimate reason to do so.
The Care Team at Harvey Mudd College is a multidisciplinary team that works to assist students in need of personal and/or academic support. The team serves as a resource for the Mudd community and meets weekly to identify concerns and develop intervention for those in need. Community members can submit concerns to the Care Team for follow-up.
A notification can be made about any concerning behavior that a student exhibits. Common concerns include:
- Any significant change in behavior (e.g. social withdrawal, not leaving dorm room)
- General mental health concerns (e.g. depression and anxiety)
- Any personal or community safety concerns
- Erratic, disruptive, or disturbing behavior
- Substance abuse or misuse concerns
What training have your proctors and residential life staff had in mental health support?
On-call assistant deans (ADs) are full-time professionals with master’s degrees and are trained in emergency response. They live on campus, represent the Division of Student Affairs, and consult with additional deans as necessary. They respond to student incidents and guide the actions of proctors (student leaders) and collaborate with Campus Safety to manage emergencies and incidents both on and off campus. On-call ADs and proctors receive training on responding to emotional and mental health concerns and crises and are trained to connect students with mental health professionals.
How often are the counselors present on campus so that students know them and know the name of an ally in the counseling office?
The Monsour Counseling and Psychological Services provides services to all HMC students and has services throughout the day as well as after-hours emergency consultation and interventions. They offer a wide range of services including individual and group therapy, attending wellness related workshops, and psychiatric medication management. For more information including setting up appointments, please go to Monsour Counseling and Psychological Services (MCAPS)
In addition to Monsour, Harvey Mudd has an on-campus counseling service called the ARC – Advanced, Reliable, and Comprehensive offering confidential counseling to HMC students. Dr. So is available for services 25 hours per week and Dr. Patel for five hours per week. We will observe all holidays and campus closures. Should students have any needs or questions about scheduling an appointment or connecting with your provider, please contact them at [tel]909.333.7434[/tel] and our staff will be happy to assist you. For matters not of confidential nature, you can also reach them by email at [email]info@arccounselingandwellness.com[/email].
To Schedule an Appointment, please go to HMC ARC Rebekah So, PsyD. This is a unique link for HMC students only. This link cannot be found on the ARC website.
Do your professors or meeting leaders ever present a “commercial break” in their lectures that talks about stress, provides examples of the types of stressors a counselor can help with, and names a specific person to contact if they could use a hand?
Many professors take time out to discuss these issues during breaks in class. In addition, our faculty and staff offer decompression sessions throughout the year. These programs allow students to relax, get stress release, connect with each other and the faculty and staff. More information is at Decompression Sessions Sign-ups – Fall 2018.
What wellness activities are offered as part of student life and how are mental wellness allies promoted on campus?
The Division of Student Affairs has two full-time deans for health and wellness as well as student wellness peers who provide educational wellness programs, one-on-one and group consultations and trainings for students, faculty and staff with regard to supporting healthy mental and physical lifestyles. A description of the programming offered by the Office of Health and Wellness, along with the event calendar, is at Health and Wellness.
The educational efforts of the Division of Student Affairs focus on helping students begin to differentiate between normal stress, which is necessary for growth, and thoughts that are destructive. The deans for health and wellness focus on connecting students with mental health professionals when needed and provide alternative programs and services to compliment talk therapy options. The offices in student affairs, along with student leaders, work hard to reduce the stigma of mental health issues for students of diverse ethnic and cultural backgrounds through workshops, programs and messages.
Additionally, many of our faculty members encourage our students to seek out systems of support including those related to wellness and have been attending trainings to learn how to infuse wellness in their classrooms. They offer faculty and staff lead decompression sessions that students can elect to participate in that seek to provide outlets for support and create a culture of wellness on campus.
In addition to this office, the division works with our consortial centers that seek to address mental and physical health issues that may relate or intersect to specific ethnic and cultural backgrounds.