Utilizing Themes from the Strategies Conference in Your Work

The 2016 NASPA Strategies Conferences, a trio of sub-conferences highlighting alcohol and other drug abuse, mental health, and violence prevention, begins in a few days. The event brings together professionals searching for ways to best serve students' individual needs and those of the student body as a whole. 

Whether you are attending or not (plan for next year!), we wanted to share some of the themes that have emerged for the conference and that might be useful in guiding your prevention efforts this year.

Rejuvenate the intersectionality of prevention

Often, we feel as though we work in silos. The same can sometimes be said for the various health topics we address. The players do not necessarily intersect, nor do the job titles. However, when looking at all the areas touched by prevention on campus, there is too much overlap to address them individually. This year, we encourage you to step back, look at the topics and people who are involved in prevention, and brainstorm ways to better integrate and strategically address the critical issues.

The “return on investment” of prevention

One of our keynote speakers at the NASPA Strategies Conference is Dr. Daniel Eisenberg from the University of Michigan. Dr. Eisenberg is an economist whose broad research goal is to improve understanding of how to invest effectively in the mental health of young people, particularly college students.

His article, “Balancing Costs and Services: How Much Should Colleges and Universities Spend on Student Mental Health?” is featured in the Winter 2016 issue of Leadership Exchange. In it, Dr. Eisenberg highlights questions that institutions should be asking themselves about their current investment in mental health services and the expected value of additional investments in health.

Embedding health across the university

It’s our hope that most college prevention staff (and college staff in general) understand and accept the idea that institutions of higher education play a vital role in preparing students for life and leadership roles in the future. Part of this growth process is helping students become healthy and engaged citizens in the larger society. Ultimately, we want our communities to be healthy places in which people can thrive. To build this foundation, it is important for us to infuse our students with knowledge, skills, and competencies for improving and maintaining health and healthy environments.

Looking at your own institution, what are areas – especially those outside of the norm – that could start to embed health and wellness into their operations and touch points with students? How can the institution model healthy behaviors?

Developing a Culture of Respect

This year, NASPA is pleased to welcome Culture of Respect and senior director Allison Tombros Korman into our organization. Culture of Respect strengthens schools by providing them with a framework to assess and improve efforts to eliminate rape and sexual assault from their campuses. We provide tools for all constituents at colleges and universities as they answer the call to ensure students are safe to pursue the promise of higher education. As Culture of Respect Advisory Board member David Lisak states, “If higher education steps up to its moral obligation, it can make a historic contribution to the struggle to contain sexual violence.”

Go back to the research

This seems obvious, though it is easy to get caught up in the day-to-day work as the months (and years) slip by. There is always updated research coming out, and it would be wise to block out some time to review, as well as to guide peer educators in the process of informing themselves and designing programs based on evidence.

Devote effort to reaching special populations

Often, our prevention efforts are designed to reach the general undergraduate population as a whole. This blanket strategy can be useful in many cases, though disparities can arise in certain sub-populations. Are there specific concerns for which peer educators could custom-design interventions? Can they help facilitate the process for connecting these populations with resources? Make a concerted effort to reach out to various student organizations and groups and listen to what their needs and concerns are.

Turning activism into actionable items

Campus activism has gained more attention this year with many high profile situations. There are important issues being highlighted through demonstrations and protests. Student leaders should work to harness that energy and help it move specific changes to policy and operating procedures forward. Being upset is valid; utilizing that to create substantive changes shows leadership.

Gaining stronger administrative support

A successful peer education group will have the support and understanding of the administration for the work they are doing.

It can seem like a daunting task to gain the support and buy-in from the administration.  Here are a few strategies to help you and your group:

• Identify how your work supports the academic mission of the campus.
• Answer the question “what’s in it for the administration?”
• Document your successes.
• Highlight the leadership skills gained by peer educators.
• Highlight your affiliation with the BACCHUS Initiatives and NASPA.
• Demonstrate how your program adheres to national standards and guidelines for health education.
• Submit your campus’ programs and efforts for breakout sessions and awards at local, regional and national conferences.
• Advisors should try to be a liaison to other campus staff and faculty groups on campus, including important decision makers about funding, office space etc.

Whether you are attending the Strategies Conferences or not, these key themes should help focus and guide your work for the next year.

Follow along with the conference discussion under #NASPAstrategies16 on social media.