Carleton’s neuroscience chair is calling on her fellow faculty to “double down” on efforts of reaching out to students following the death of one of her pupils.
Kim Hellemans took to Twitter last week to emphasize the importance of support networks after finding out the student had died by suicide. The Charlatan will not be publishing the student’s name out of respect for the family.
“I am very, very sad,” Hellemans said in her thread. “As a professor, there is not much public discourse on how the death of our students might affect us. Many do not realize how their tragedies, like their successes, become our tragedies.”
I have struggled with the decision to go public with this. At first, was silent out of respect for the family (they have since posted about it). But as Chair to the Department, and as someone who is so vocal about mental health outreach, I feel the need to speak out.
— Kim Hellemans (@MindingtheBrain) April 17, 2020
Hellemans said that the student had been struggling with her mental health, and that due to COVID-19 physical distancing measures, she lost her support system. Hellemans added that because of these exceptional circumstances, she has been directly reaching out to her students more than she had before.
“When I found out the news, my first thought was: ‘I should have done more.’ And then, a feeling of helplessness: ‘Why bother?’” she said.
“But then I remember that the unseen statistic is the many students, friends, loved ones that are supported by mental health outreach. That are buffered by kind words and compassion and knowing someone is out there to support them.”
Hellemans also called on instructors to do more to directly support their students, especially during this stressful period of self-isolation.
“Now, more than ever, we must double down our efforts,” she said. “We must keep mental health as a key focus throughout this pandemic.”
Hellemans declined The Charlatan’s request for further comment, and Carleton’s administration released a brief statement of condolences.
“It is a tragedy and our thoughts go out to the family and loved ones. We have been working to support students, staff and faculty at this very difficult time,” said Steven Reid, Carleton’s director of communications.
Many of the student’s classmates were saddened by her unexpected death. Olivia Turner is a fourth-year neuroscience student who was in classes with the student. Turner is also a founding member of Stigma Ends at CU – an organization that raises awareness for addiction and mental health.
“When it hits so close to home, when it’s someone you interact with and you see quite frequently … it makes it more real and a lot harder to process,” Turner said in a phone interview. “My heart broke for her friends and her family.”
Turner emphasized the importance of conversations about mental health regardless of world events. She said it’s especially important right now because of the unfamiliarity of the current lock-down situations, as students’ inability to gather in groups takes away a vital part of support systems.
“No one necessarily has a single right answer of ‘these are the things you should do; these are the steps you can take’ because none of us have been through this before,” she said. “We’re all just trying to figure it out together.”
Despite the tragedy, Turner said Carleton’s faculty has generally handled student mental health well during the time of COVID-19. She said she praises the professors who extended deadlines and made some assignments optional to ease stress, though pointed out that some professors have been carrying on as usual and “acting like nothing is happening.”
“It’s impacting all of us in different ways and different capacities,” she said. “That is one thing that I found has been a bit disconnected: the professor-to-professor response to this whole thing.”
Turner said she hopes to expand the advocacy work she’s doing with Stigma End at CU to be able to virtually connect with students in need.
The student’s employer took to GoFundMe to raise money for the Canadian Mental Health Association. So far, the crowdfunding campaign has raised over $14,300 from over 250 donors.
If you or someone you know is struggling with mental health, contact:
Mental Health Crisis Line: 613-722-6914 (within Ottawa) and 1-866-996-0991 (outside Ottawa)
Distress Centre of Ottawa and Region 24-hour line: 613-238-3311
Youth Services Bureau 24/7 Crisis Line: 613-260-2360 or 1-877-377-7775 (toll)
Featured image by Pascale Malenfant.
