Student Well-Being
What is Well-Being?
“The state of being comfortable, healthy, or happy.”Student well-being is an important factor for learning outcomes in higher education. Gallup measured well-being based on the five common elements that people need to thrive in their lives.
Purpose - Liking what you do each day and being motivated to achieve your goals. Purpose well-being in education is related to faculty and staff engagement and their ability to create excitement for learning and development and to students in their alignment to their learning or major.
Social - Having supportive relationships and love in your life, including strong relationships with classmates, faculty and staff.
Financial - Managing your economic life to reduce stress and increase security. This has to do with student loans, college tuition and financial aid or a parent's ability to put food on the table, buy school supplies or keep their employment -- all of which affect students' financial well-being.
Community - Liking where you live, feeling safe and having pride in your community, including pride in the campus or school and having a sense of belonging.
Physical - Having good health and enough energy to get things done daily. For students to have thriving physical well-being, they need nutritious meals, exercise, sufficient sleep and healthy mechanisms for dealing with stress.
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Accessing Well-Being Resources at UNCC
The World Health Organization describes mental well-being as a state of well-being in which the individual realizes his or her own abilities, can cope with the normal stresses of life, can work productively and fruitfully, and is able to contribute to his or her community. This description asserts that mental well-being is more than an absence of mental illness. There are relative and subjective elements in this description which are necessary in trying to encapsulate mental well-being.
The Center for Counseling and Psychological Services at UNC Charlotte supports the holistic well-being and academic success of students and contributes to a healthy and inclusive campus climate. This is accomplished by providing short-term individual and group counseling, crisis management, consultation, referral services, and educational and preventive initiatives for the campus community
The Center educates, supports, and empowers UNC Charlotte students to achieve balance among multiple dimensions of wellness. It does this by providing education and resources and a variety of issues that impact students' health, wellness, and safety. The Center also provides a sober community that includes therapy, volunteering, and social and educational activities.
The UNC Charlotte Student Health Center is your one-stop-shop for most primary medical care appointments, prescriptions, vaccinations, insurance questions, and even consultations with a Registered Dietitian. Both telemedicine and in-person appointments are currently offered, depending on the medical issue. These services are available to all UNC Charlotte Students.
If a student comes to you with a health issue and are apprehensions about going to a doctor, you can provide them with the following resource, the Student Health 101: Self-Care Guide at https://selfcareguide.readsh101.com/ , students can manage many illnesses and injuries safely and effectively from home. The self-care guide does not replace a diagnosis from a health care provider; however, it may be used to identify possible causes of your symptoms, provide at home treatments and guidance on seeking medical attention
It aids undergraduate and graduate students experiencing food insecurity by distributing a variety of nutritious foods. The Center for Graduate Life is also a pantry distribution center, offering a host of canned and dry goods in addition to single serving frozen meals. For more information on CGL pantry distributions, see the CGL website. The Jamil Niner Student Pantry is located at 1224 John Kirk Drive, Charlotte, NC. You can contact them for further info at (704)-687-5323.
This office provides assistance for students who experience documented medical, psychological, or personal crises that negatively impact coursework. SASS may assist students with academic issues such as absence verification and requests for Incomplete grades, as well as financial concerns.
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Tying it All Together
There is an abundance of resources at your finger tips here at UNCC. Knowing how to get help and directing students is just important as understanding who your students are. The Teaching Assistant has the unique ability to to understand and guide students to a better campus and learning experience by approaching every situation with understanding and being emphatic. It is important to remember that you are also a student and you can take advantage of the resources provided in this chapter.
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Resources
References
Tadimalla, Sri Yeswanth. (2020). Guiding students for success and well-being . Teaching Seminar, Fall 2020. [link to view]