This is my first semester for the MA in Mental Health and Wellness program. I feel fortunate to have found this program being offered online, I was initially hestitant to begin graduate school because of the costs, but I decided it was time to follow my dreams.

After graduation I hope to get a job as a Student Success Coach at a college or university. I have been working in higher education for over 15 years, and would love the ability to work more closely with students to help and encourage them in following their dreams. I know students often face a lot of obstacles and challenges, and would like to help them in a greater capacity. In my future role of Student Success Coach, I hope to take what I have learned about crisis and trauma and apply it to helping the students overcome the obstacles they may be facing. I feel like I will be able to better help them because I will understand that problems that may be on the surface, could be caused by deeper trauma. I can be more sensitive to that, and be able to assist them and get them to the right resources, and counseling as needed.

Personally, I have had a lot of struggles with finishing my education, abut I finally finished my bachelor’s degree last year. I feel like my mental health was a major factor in this, I struggled with self-esteem from trauma in my past, and the effects of stress of working full time and attending classes full time. I also struggled with maintaining motivation and dedication, often only taking 1 class here and there. I am so thankful to have finished my degree, I only wish I could have found someone such as a counselor or student success coach which could have helped me through it. That is one of the major reasons I want to pursue this path, is to be able to help others.

For this course I would like to have a better understanding of trauma and its effects. I know trauma can show up in a variety of ways, and sometimes we might not even be aware of it. I would like to be able to help people who struggle with it.

The biggest take away from the reading and resources is how important it is to educate myself on mental conditions and learn what I can about it, so I can help others without causing any harm.

My biggest take away from the activities is that it really opened my eyes to the vast amount of suicides that are committed each year, and just how many people experience mental illness. According to the Mental Health Quiz, “Suicide is the 10^th leading cause of death in the United States.” It has also made me aware of just how important it is to become educated in mental health, and for our schools and society to have more mental health and counseling services available.

The article that I am including is called “Fostering Connections in Higher Education” by Dr. Katelyn Barney, Dr. Nicole Crawford, and Dr. Janine Delahunty. The article discusses how creating community in education creates a holistic environment that is conducive to success and greater learning.  I feel this was a good resource for me since I have experienced how fostering connections with students, and encouraging them to connect with other students can really encourage success. I had a previous position at the community college near me where I managed the CoLab, a space where students could study, that also hosted community events, and had study spaces available. I saw first hand how students would get to know each other and create studying communities, and would appreciate having the study spaces to get together and study as a group. I had a lot of great experiences getting to know the students and welcoming them to the CoLab. I can see how this can really encourage students to continue to come to class and work towards their degree because they were part of a community.