By Michelle Chapdelaine
Fact-checker

The transition from living under the watchful eyes of parents to a double bedroom in the quad continues long after the orientation weekend whistles fade and the O-leaders’ sweatbands are retired.  The first year of college presents many challenges, assistant dean of students and Residence Life director Lou DiMasi says.

A clean slate

Megan Ohler, director of new student programs and development, says she met with close to 300 first-year students last year.  All first-years are invited at some point in the year to meet one-on-one with Ohler, to check in on the transition process, she says.

“In general, people are receptive to talking about their experience,” she says.

DiMasi has been involved in Student Life at St. Michael's for 27 years, he says. (Photo by Cailey McDermott)

First-year Emily McNally says the hardest part of starting school was not knowing anyone.  As a naturally social person, she has gotten involved and made friends, but says she recognizes this is not easy for everyone.

“It can be hard if people are making groups of friends and you get stuck by yourself," McNally says. "I see it a lot; there are the cliques and the stragglers."

Finding a balance between social life and academics can also be a challenge, she says.

Ohler points to the freedoms of living at college as the catalyst for potential problems. 

“It filters into other areas: going to class, studying, alcohol responsibility," Ohler says. "It’s now all up to you, and it can be really easy to let go.”

Some students see college as a clean slate, a time to start new, or try on a new identity, DiMasi says.

In some cases this might just mean changing hair color, DiMasi says.  More serious consequences arise when students decide to stop taking prescribed medication, for example, throwing their bodies and minds into crisis, he says.

Taking care of the serious cases

There was one confirmed suicide attempt by a first-year on campus this fall. DiMasi declined to comment on whether there have been other incidents this semester.

“From my perspective, how many is not that important.  It doesn’t matter if there has been one or 40 or 100, or none” he says.  “What’s important to me is to try to take care of what’s happening and adjust.”

Depression and anxiety are common conditions students present with in appointments with campus counselors, Linda Hollingdale, director of counseling services at the Student Resource Center, writes in an e-mail.

“Within that, suicide has been discussed approximately 20 percent of the time on average. Most of the time students discuss their thoughts of suicide, but have no plan or intention to act upon those thoughts. When students can be honest about those thoughts, it’s very healthy, keeping those thoughts secret is damaging to mental health,” she writes.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, suicide is the third leading cause of death for people ages 15-24.

DiMasi says when he goes to meetings related to his profession, he is told that mental health issues in young people are on the rise, but says this doesn’t surprise him.

“Ten years ago we wouldn’t have known what these situations are,” he says.  “I think now we are more empathic to students coming in with these difficulties.”

Ohler says she thinks there is still a stigma surrounding such students.  The desire to appear “normal” to peers can outweigh the importance of keeping existing support systems in place, she says.

Open doors and good hearts

Residence Life staff, the counseling services at the Student Resource Center, and Edmundite Campus Ministry are example of support systems available to students at St. Michael’s.

“Everybody here has a really good heart.  We really want students to succeed,” Ohler says.

The Resident Assistants in her building, Joyce Hall, are very accessible, McNally says.

“If I don’t feel comfortable talking to my R.A. about something, I know I can go to one of the other ones," she adds.

R.A.s learn of potential problems from a variety of sources: other students, Facebook, even janitors, junior Rob Sullivan, a Ryan R.A., says.  After getting to know his residents, he says it’s not hard to tell if there are dramatic changes in a student’s behavior.

Sophomore R.A. Eliza Giroux on duty in the Ryan staff office. (Photo by Michelle Chapdelaine)

“If your gut tells you something’s wrong, follow it and check in with your friend,” Hollingdale writes.  “When handling a delicate situation, honesty is always the best approach. It’s hard to see friends in pain and causing harm to themselves…if done with respect, tact, and compassion, an honest concern expressed friend to friend is very valuable.”

Sophomore Eliza Giroux says her Ryan fourth floor door is always open, and encourages her residents to come by if they are stressed or need to talk about anything.

Residence Life staff are not trained to diagnose, DiMasi says, but they do hear from various specialists as part of their training, and there is a psychological emergency protocol in every R.A.s binder.

DiMasi says confidentiality no longer holds if a student talks about harming themselves.  Student Life staff, parents, and often counseling services are pulled in.

“We’re really in a partnership with the parents,” DiMasi says, “with our goal being to walk you across that stage at graduation in four or five years.”