SGB hosts Mental Health Town Hall at weekly meeting

Student Government Board hosted a Mental Health Town Hall featuring representatives from the University Counseling Center at their weekly meeting in Nordy’s Place Tuesday night. The board members discussed concerns and current mental health initiatives through a moderated Q&A panel. 

Some attendees and board members were concerned with a lack of clarity about the operational procedures for the Counseling Center. SGB President Ryan Young added to these concerns, and said he feels that the UCC doesn’t properly disseminate information. 

“I know that a lot of people think there is misinformation around the UCC policies,” Young said. “I was an RA, and there were a lot of things that I believed to be true that I now know were not true. I have personally really struggled to find information there. I think that adds to the frustration with trying to find accurate information.”

Board Member Ashley White also mentioned discrepancies with the drop-in hours for the Counseling Center.

“I was told that … you guys do drop in hours and I could just go up to the UCC,” White said. “I went earlier in the day and then I went to the front desk to ask for drop-in hours. I was told to leave a call and they would get back to me. I did call, and I was told that there is a waitlist to see a counselor.”

In response, Dr. Ashley Wolfgang, associate director of clinical services, said some of the discrepancies were related to past COVID-19 policies. 

“I’m sorry you had that experience where you had to leave and call,” Wolfgang said. “There was a point in time more related to COVID days and the height in COVID when we were concerned about volume in the waiting room, and so we had a policy to call first and then come in just for safety reasons.”

Currently, the UCC operates on a drop-in model from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday, but students can call anytime in the event of a crisis.

Currently some of the services the Counseling Center provides include group, peer and individual therapy. They also host virtual drop-in hours, crisis support and wellness workshops.

The University Counseling Center representatives acknowledged there are still some issues within their modes of operation, but said they are continuing to make improvements including updating the website. 

Bernadette Smith, associate director of outreach for the UCC, said the reworked website will be “cleaner,” but did not specify when the new website will be online.

“I have had an opportunity to take a peek — it’s a lot cleaner, it feels a lot easier to find information,” Smith said. 

Another improvement the Counseling Center hopes to make includes hiring more staff with diverse backgrounds and more people of color. 

“We put our staff through rigorous multicultural training internally to our department, and that’s just one example of things that our staff are asked to do, to make sure that we are doing our best to support students of color,” Wolfgang said.

Additionally, SGB passed R-2023-3, a resolution that signifies that SGB stands in “firm solidarity” with the faculty union.

Allocations:

Majorette Dance requested $2,462.55 for new uniforms. The board amended this request and approved $1,300. 

PIST, a ski and snowboard club at Pitt, requested $13,900 for transportation. The board amended this request and approved $12,000. 

Catholic Newman Club requested $14,000 for transportation. The board denied this request in full.