While the number of post-secondary students seeking help for mental health issues has been increasing exponentially, York University has taken a step in the right direction to make it easier for students to access the help they need.
Navi Dhanota, a student currently studying at York, was tired of disclosing her diagnosis and still not receiving the accommodations she needed. So when York asked for her specific mental health diagnosis, Dhanota filed a human rights complaint against the school. After a two-year battle, the Ontario Human Rights Commission intervened and stated that York can no longer make it a mandatory requirement for students to disclose their private mental health diagnosis.
Universities depend on a specific mental health diagnosis to decide on the appropriate accommodation. However, more often than not, students are not given the accommodations that suit their needs when they disclose this information.
Two students with the same diagnosis do not necessarily have the same needs or require the same accommodations. One student may not appreciate being placed in a quiet, secluded room for exams, whereas the other may find writing in a large exam hall to be intimidating and distracting.
York’s guidelines still require students to have a doctor confirm their need for accommodation but will not require them to disclose a medical diagnosis. Because of this, the focus has shifted very positively from depending on a label to actually looking into how the disability affects a student’s ability to learn.
According to an article published in the Journal of Postsecondary Education and Disability last year, the number of students with mental health disabilities enrolled in Ontario post-secondary schools has increased by nearly 70 per cent between 2006 and 2011. Over the past few years, there has been, as researchers are dubbing it, a “tidal wave” of students like Dhanota reaching out for help and seeking academic accommodations for mental health issues. Research has shown that students struggling with a mental health disability are less likely to graduate in comparison to those in other disability classifications when not given the help they need.
Many oppose the new strategy, including York’s administration. Marc Wilchesky, executive director of counseling and disability services at York, is worried that the new guidelines will affect his department’s ability to help students.
“If we don’t get the diagnosis, if students choose not to provide it, in some cases it may make it a little more difficult to come up with the appropriate accommodation,” he told the Toronto Star.
But giving students accommodations that are dependent on a label doesn’t help anyone—and why would a member of university administration be able to better assess what accommodations a student needs than a doctor? Michael Condra, psychologist and lead author of “Academic Accommodations” explained in the same Toronto Star article, “Labelling a complex illness like depression, which can manifest in many ways, won’t do as much to help a student as a doctor noting exactly how the illness affects that person’s ability to learn.”
Others opposing the change believe that by not requiring students to disclose their diagnosis, universities would be perpetuating more stigma around mental health. Toronto Star columnist, Heather Mallick, wrote that we are reverting back into silence and shame by not having students communicate their diagnosis. But this is simply not the case.
York has now given students the choice to reveal personal information rather than be coerced into disclosing it. It does not create more stigma but rather, undermines it—something that should be applauded. York’s new guidelines are not about taking away students’ voices, it’s about giving them a choice.
Many students are intimidated by the idea of disclosing the private information that they are living with mental illness, and many are intimidated enough to avoid seeking the help they need. By giving students the choice to disclose and focusing on how the illness hinders learning, York has not only made it more accessible for students to receive help, but also provides help that is better suited for their needs.
One can only hope that other universities follow suit.
