North Island College (NIC) is establishing a mental health and well-being strategy to improve the environment on their campuses.
The CARE² plan features goals for the next five years.
The goals include developing curriculum and processes that will help provide greater mental health support, launching additional programs focused on destigmatizing mental illness and offering more supports such as counselling and emergency funding for students.
“Our aim is to build on the solid foundation that exists at NIC,” said Felicity Blaiklock, NIC’s director of student affairs.
“We want to ensure that we foster the resilience of our student community while also supporting those in crisis. Traditionally, the response to mental health challenges has been the focus of support services such as counselling. The CARE² plan identifies the need to view all aspects of NIC’s operations through a mental health and well-being lens to create the best conditions for students to thrive.”
The plan was created using input from students and informed by the National Standard of Canada for Mental Health and Well-being for Post-Secondary Students.
“The CARE² plan will help NIC develop further college-wide supports for all students to allow them to succeed,” said Hayley Dunbar, North Island Student Union services director. “It’s a great step for NIC to focus on creating healthier communities in a systemic way.”
