For many students, attending college can prove to be a challenging time. While at Iowa State, some students might feel homesick, while others might find it difficult to navigate American culture after growing up in a different country. Other students might feel out of place as the first in their family able to go to college, while other students might arrive at college later in life after raising a family or serving in the military. When facing these individual obstacles, it can also be difficult for students to find the resources and mentorship needed to help them thrive, which can often lead to even greater challenges, such as personal debt or physical illness.
To provide more support to its students, Iowa State established Student Wellness in 2017. This new department uses a comprehensive approach to promote a healthy university that values all students' well-being while also examining the broader issues of social inequity that serve as barriers to students' academic and personal success. In doing so, Student Wellness follows the recommendations of the Okanagan Charter, a framework for personal well-being outlined at the 2015 International Conference on Health Promoting Universities and Colleges, and helps students navigate eight wellness dimensions: emotional, environmental, financial, intellectual, occupational, physical, social and spiritual wellness.
In guiding individuals to create positive goals and shape behavior changes to meet those goals, Student Wellness works closely with ISU WellBeing, as well as with many other campus and community partners. Student Wellness focuses on various topics including food insecurity, body image, eating disorder prevention, suicide prevention, mental health promotion, alcohol and other drug prevention, collegiate recovery, power-based personal violence prevention, and more. If you would like to take advantage of these resources, contact Student Wellness at studentwellness@iastate.edu.
