The University of Prince Edward Island (UPEI) has announced that they will be expanding their suicide intervention program through a $25,000 grant from the Bell Let’s Talk Community Fund.
The grant is one of many Bell Canada is giving out to eligible applicants that will range from $5,000 to $25,000 for projects “that improve access to mental health care, supports and services for people in Canada,” according to Bell Let’s Talk’s website.
Nicole Phillips, associate director (marketing and communications) at UPEI, said in an email that the university applied for the grants after receiving a “call for applications,” and were later notified by Bell Let’s Talk that they would receive the largest grant possible ($25,000) to expand their program.
Bell Let’s Talk is a corporate initiative created by Bell Canada which began in September 2010 to create a conversation around mental health in Canada.
The annual Bell Let’s Talk Day falls on Jan. 31, where Bell Canada donates five cents to Canadian mental health programs for interactions such as texts, and calls made by Bell customers, as well as tweets using #BellLetsTalk.
So far, Bell’s total donation to mental health programs stands at just over $86,504,429 and they are expected to have donated at least $100 million by 2020.
The grant given to UPEI will help the university improve an existing program called the Applied Suicide Intervention Skills Training (ASIST) program by allowing them to train two UPEI student affairs employees as ASIST program instructors, according to a press release.
The ASIST program is a two-day suicide prevention workshop presented by certified trainers, which is designed to increase people’s knowledge, comfort level, and confidence in responding to a person at risk of suicide, according to Phillips.
She said the training program was developed by LivingWorks Education, “the most widely used, acclaimed, and researched training of its kind in the world.”
Following their training, the instructors will offer their knowledge and skills in suicide intervention with students, faculty, and staff at the university free of charge.
“This is a very exciting development in UPEI’s move to better equip our whole campus community to support our students, faculty and staff,” said Treena Smith, director of student affairs at UPEI, in the press release.
Smith said their plan is to have over 200 people trained in ASIST over the next three years through this funding.
Alaa Abd-El-Aziz, president and vice- chancellor of UPEI, said in the press release the grant will “have a significant impact on our ability to encourage an open dialogue across campus about student mental health.”
Phillips said schools should work towards expanding their strategies surrounding mental health and creating a community where students’ wellbeing is at the forefront.
“The world is complicated and never before have students faced more pressures and stress than they do today,” she said. “A university’s mission is centred around education, research, and service, but we also have a role to care for and support young people who transition to a post-secondary educational environment.”
Photo by Angela Tilley
