By Alex Shapiro
Staff Writer
Student Government met with Assistant Vice President for Student Affairs, Health & Wellness Mark Forest, and recognized one student organization during its general body meeting on Oct. 10.
Forest addressed the services that the Division of Health and Wellness provides on campus. These services include the Alcohol and Drug Education program, Anti-Violence Initiatives, the Collegiate Recovery Program, Recreation and Wellness and Student Health Services.
Some members of the general body explained that rigorous coursework at the College was a large factor of students’ stress and anxiety.
Forest presented data from a survey of the College completed last spring to SG’s general body. According to the data, 65.1 percent of students felt overwhelming anxiety, 38.5 percent of students felt so depressed they found it difficult to function during the school year and 9.3 percent of students had seriously considered suicide during the past year.
Forest highlighted the progress made by Counseling and Psychological Services since the fall semester of 2014.
According to Forest, CAPS has since increased staffing by more than 50 percent. The services now provide enhanced referral capabilities for longer term treatment and increased programing in health and wellness, resiliency and holistic health.
According to a national survey by the American Psychological Association, college students often experience anxiety (41.6 percent), depression (36.4 percent) and relationship problems (35.8 percent).
SG approved NAfME, the National Association for Music Educators. NAfME’s goal is to create a lasting community of music educators that can support early career music educators with professional development opportunities, club members explained.
The organization plans on hosting and co-sponsoring events on campus with other music-based organizations. The program also plans on expanding group membership and helping the College’s Department of Music with events and auditions.
SG formally announced that the lion statue next to the Brower Student Center will be revealed before the Homecoming tailgate begins at 10 a.m. on Saturday, Oct. 27. SG will also host a “Pie an SG” event on Tuesday, Oct. 30 from 11 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. outside the Student Center.
The Sophomore Class Council announced its pajama themed movie night will be held on Nov. 6.
SG is sponsoring Red Tape @ TCNJ on Friday, Oct. 26 at noon in the Student Center Room 216. Elizabeth Bapasola, the assistant vice president for student affairs and Gary Miller, the director of compliance and privacy officer at the College, will discuss with students the College’s institutional bureaucracy and new policies the school plans on implementing.
