The J-TAC

Issue date: 1/31/08 Section: Opinion

Ashley Fuquay

Crisis management has been well underway with the Code Purple Alert System on campus, but what about crisis prevention? It's all good and well to be able to tell people that there is a shooter on campus ten minutes after the shooting has already started, but what about trying to target disturbed students and give them help before harm is caused to the student or the students and faculty around him or her.
A team was established to discuss these issues and it is about time. Faculty needs to be trained to spot signs of mental illness so they can be reported to the Counseling Center for help and testing.
Students that test to have mental illness need to have counseling sessions scheduled throughout their time at school to give them the best chance for success, academically and socially.
Students also need to be aware of this resource so they can know who to go to when someone around them seems disturbed.
For readers that I have put off by this opinion, it isn't the end of the world to go to the counseling office. It is a great opportunity if you just need someone to talk to in an atmosphere that is completely confidential.
If a student has a friend who is not acting as they usually do and you think is depressed, try to get them to get an appointment at the Counseling Center on the upper level of the Thompson Student Center. It is free of charge. To contact the Counseling Center, call (254) 968-9044. For the suicide hotline, call 1-800-722-5987.

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