A new program at NSU launched this semester by the NSU Student CARE Team titled Breaking Barriers: Group Psychoeducation. Breaking Barriers is a series of virtual group sessions, with other NSU students, held throughout the semester helping students learn skills to better manage their lives. Some of the areas that Breaking Barriers covers include time management and organization, mindfulness and stress management, self-care, how to develop resiliency and healthy relationships.
The NSU Student CARE Team is a relatively new multidisciplinary team at NSU designed to provide support to students’ well-being and academic success by connecting students with campus and community resources. Two members of the NSU Student CARE Team include Hailey Fitzpatrick, assistant office manager for the Office of Student Affairs, and Corey Watford, office associate for the Office of Student Affairs, both of whom are graduate students of the clinical mental health counseling program at NSU.
“Our psychoeducation groups are mainly geared toward students looking to improve skills in different areas. These can be communication, time management, stress and relaxation and mindfulness, just to provide a safe space for students to be able to talk about their experiences and suggest different skills for coping and just to provide a resource,” said Watford.
Students interested in joining any of the psychoeducational groups can register by sending an email of interest directly to the Student CARE Team at nsucareteam@nova.edu. Students will then receive a phone call from a member of the team and answer a questionnaire. At this point, students are able to find out more about the groups and pick which group fits best in regards to scheduling and personal goals. After the call, a consent form must be filled out and the student will receive a schedule for their specified programming.
“I have heard from students that, sometimes, it can take a while to get an appointment at Henderson or maybe you don’t exactly have an issue that needs to go to Henderson, but you need a place where you can work things out, gain some skills — kind of a medium or liaison between going to Henderson and just talking to some friends,” said Watford.
The groups will be presented as a series of virtual group sessions held throughout the semester for four weeks at a time. The meetings last for an hour per week and focus on a variety of topics. Each group will have up to 12 students and students can register for one group each period. Students who are interested in more than one group are welcome to sign up for another after completing their initial programming.
“We’re hearing it from a lot of students; people are feeling a little bit isolated. I think that’s a word that’s recurring that we’re hearing from students. ‘I really want to connect, I really want to find a way to get back in a collaborative effort with other students.’ What we really wanted to do is bridge the gap of how are we able to connect students, not just to each other, but some therapeutic type of resources to build these skills,” said Watford.
An important distinction is that Breaking Barriers is not therapy, even though some of the topics may overlap.
“It’s not therapy because it’s students who are facilitating the group. The students are in a doctoral psychology program, but they are not licensed to provide therapy. It’s more of a safe space to talk about skills and learn about skills. It’s more psychoeducational than therapy. If you need therapy you go to Henderson or if you want some extra skill building and sharpening of your tools, then you come to the psychoeducational program,” said Fitzpatrick.
Students can find more information on Breaking Barriers on the NSU Student CARE Team website.
