Mental Health First Aid

Mental Health First Aid is a skills-based training course for RIT faculty, staff, and students who are interested in making their community healthier, happier, and safe. 

About Mental Health First Aid Trainings

This course has 8-hours of content that can be delivered either as an in-person training or as a blended training.

Through a Mental Health First Aid training, you will:

  • Learn how to describe and talk about mental health, openly and non-judgmentally.
  • Learn how to approach, reassure, and support fellow RIT community members when they are struggling with their mental health.
  • Explore what self-care looks like for you and practical applications of self-care.
     

As a university, RIT is dedicated to creating a more mentally well campus. Our instructors for our training sessions come from various areas across campus, including faculty and staff from:

  • National Technical Institute for the Deaf Learning Consortium
  • American Sign Language and Interpreting Education Program
  • College of Science
  • College of Engineering Technology
  • Golisano College of Computing and Information Sciences
  • Saunders College of Business
  • School of Individualized Study
  • College of Health Sciences and Technology
  • Kate Gleason College of Engineering
  • Public Safety
  • Residence Life
  • Case Management
  • Counseling and Psychological Services
  • Health Promotion

Get Involved

Mental Health First Aid is available for RIT faculty, staff, and students. To participate in a Mental Health First Aid training session, you can either request a session for your group or register for a scheduled session listed below.

Request a session for your group

Upcoming Training Sessions

If the following training sessions do not align with your schedule, be sure to check back throughout the semester for any new scheduled training sessions that have been added.

FAQs

Mental Health First Aid is a skills-based training course, in which you will:

  • Learn how to describe and talk about mental health, openly and non-judgmentally
  • Learn how to approach, reassure, and support a fellow RIT community member when they may be struggling with their mental health
  • Explore what self-care looks like for you with practical applications of self-care


We provide these trainings via an in-person format or a blended format, and are very fortunate to have the opportunity to provide these training sessions in both English and American Sign Language. For more information on these formats, see What is the difference between an in-person training session and a blended training session? below. 

To participate in a Mental Health First Aid training session, you can either request a session for your group or register for a scheduled session. If you have any questions, please contact Beau Gibbs at bmghcw@rit.edu.

In-person Training 
For our in-person training format, you will complete 15 minutes of pre-work (that includes filling out demographic information and a pre-test) before attending an in-person session. All of the content is delivered in the in-person content delivery session.

Blended Training
For our blended training format, you will complete 2.5-hours of online self-paced pre-work (that is primarily content delivery, in addition to filling out demographic information and a pre-test) before attending the in-person content delivery session. Part of the content is delivered online via the pre-work, and the other part of the content is delivered in the in-person content delivery session.

As long as the session(s) allow for the 8-hours of content to be delivered within 2 weeks of the first session, delivery of the content is flexible.

There are two delivery options for your training session: in-person and blended.

Please note: the 8-hour time frame is strictly content delivery and does NOT include breaks. The time frames listed below include break-times, which extends the total training time.

For an in-person training delivery the options include, but are not limited to: 

  • One 9-Hour Day
  • Two 4.5-Hour Days
  • Three 3-Hour Days
  • Four 2.5-Hour Days
  • A customizable schedule tailored to your group

In addition to 15 minutes of pre-work that must be completed.

For a blended training delivery, the options are: 

  • One 6.5-Hour Day
  • Two 3.5-Hour Days

In addition to the 2.5-hours of pre-work that must be completed.

In order to be fully certified, you MUST attend all training sessions if your training is across multiple days. If, for example, you are only able to attend two days of a three day training course, the training will not count. You will not be a certified Mental Health First Aider, and, if you wish to be certified, you will have to restart the entire process in a different session.

As long as the session(s) allow for the 8-hours of content to be delivered within 2 weeks of the first session, delivery of the content is flexible.

There are two delivery options for your training session: in-person and blended.

Please note: the 8-hour time frame is strictly content delivery and does NOT include breaks. The time frames listed below include break-times, which extends the total training time.

For an in-person training delivery the options include, but are not limited to: 

  • One 9-Hour Day
  • Two 4.5-Hour Days
  • Three 3-Hour Days
  • A customizable schedule tailored to your group

In addition to 15 minutes of pre-work that must be completed.

For a blended training delivery, the options are: 

  • One 7-Hour Day
  • Two 3.5-Hour Days

In addition to the 2.5-hours of pre-work that must be completed.

In order to be fully certified, you MUST attend all training sessions if your training is across multiple days. If, for example, you are only able to attend two days of a three day training course, the training will not count. You will not be a certified Mental Health First Aider, and, if you wish to be certified, you will have to restart the entire process in a different session.

There are a few things to keep in mind when trying to schedule a Mental Health First Aid session for your group.

In order to host a session, you will need anywhere from 5-30 people in your group. If at any point, your group attendance falls below 5 people, we will be forced to reschedule your training so more people can attend. If you wish to host a training for 31 or more people, we will need to split the group up into at least 2 different sessions.

Once you have a roster, please email that roster via an Excel spreadsheet to Beau Gibbs (bmghcw@rit.edu) prior to your training. This roster should include the names and emails of all people attending, including yourself.

  • For in-person trainings, please send the completed roster at least 1 week before your scheduled training.
  • For blended trainings, please send the completed roster at least 2 weeks before your scheduled training session.


If Access Services are required for your group, we ask that you please reserve those services for your group members.

While we will provide snacks for your group, we are unable to provide meals for your group.

We also ask for you and your group’s patience and understanding with the training. Our trainers are volunteers from the RIT community, and there may be last minute changes that occur if something happens to a trainer.

Beau Gibbs, Health Promotion Specialist, will reach out to you within 48 hours of the request form submission to inquire more about your request, and ensure you understand next steps. 

In order to qualify as a Mental Health First Aider, you must complete all pre-work and post-work that has been assigned to you. Once you have completed this work and attended your in-person content delivery session, you will be emailed a certificate of completion. This certificate designates you as an official Mental Health First Aider, and is good for 3 years starting for your in-person content delivery date.

After 3 years, we highly recommend retaking the course to not only stay certified, but to also learn updated information, language, and resources regarding mental health.

Connect is the online learning platform that Mental Health First Aid uses for pre-work and post-work. You will be emailed an invitation from Connect to create your account on Connect once your training details have been settled. This email will NOT come from Beau Gibbs (bmghcw@rit.edu).

Click here if you already have a Connect account and need to log in

As a reminder, your email will come from Connect, not Beau Gibbs (bmghcw@rit.edu). If it has been over 48-hours and you still have not received an account creation invitation, please reach out to Beau Gibbs.

Please allow for 24-48 business hours for the class to appear on your Connect dashboard. Creating an account does not automatically enroll you in the class. As you will have to be manually enrolled in the class after your account creation, there may be a delay in getting access to your course. If you still are not enrolled in the class at least 3 business days after creating an account, please email Beau Gibbs at bmghcw@rit.edu.

Yes, but there are caveats. The best time to switch trainings is if you have not started the pre-work and the training session has not begun. 

However, if you have started the pre-work and the training session has not begun, you can still switch trainings, but please note that you will have to redo all of the pre-work. 

If you have completed the pre-work, and the training session has begun, you still can switch trainings, however, any progress you had made in your current session will not be saved, and you will have to restart the entire process for the new session.

Very rarely can pre-work be transferred from one training to another, even if it is due to the training being canceled.

Pre-work cannot be transferred if you are transferring from one delivery format to another (e.g. from an in-person training to a blended training and vice versa) or if the session you are transferring to is 91 or more days out from the original training date.

Even in cases where the rules are met, it is still ultimately up to the National Council for Mental Wellbeing (the creators and distributors of Mental Health First Aid) on if they are able to transfer the pre-work.

Mental Health Support at RIT

Counseling and Psychological Services is aware that for many communities, there are barriers that exist related to accessing mental health services. We are committed to continuously working toward accessible, equitable, and inclusive services for our students.

Did you know that we have embedded counselors across campus to best support our RIT students in both academic and community spaces? You can meet with a counselor in a space that is convenient and familiar to you. If you or a friend is struggling, we hope you reach out.

If this is an emergency and you are on campus, please call Public Safety at 585-475-3333 or text 585-205-8333.

Counseling and Psychological Services offers goal-focused individual therapy, group therapy, crisis support, and psychiatric services in an open, safe, and confidential environment.

  • To schedule an appointment, contact the office at 585-475-2261 or send a secure message on the RIT Wellness Portal and select “Counseling Services – for General Questions.”
  • If you are in need of support after business hours, you can call the 24-hour mental health line at 1-855-436-1245, or contact Public Safety by calling 585-475-3333 or texting 585-205-8333.


Workshops and Outreach Groups
In addition to direct therapeutic services, Counseling and Psychological Services offers workshops and outreach groups throughout the semester to provide additional support to RIT students. Workshops and outreach groups are not a psychotherapy service, and instead are supportive and educational opportunities for connection.

Learn more about Workshops and Outreach Groups


NTID Counseling and Academic Advising Services
NTID’s Counseling and Academic Advising Services provide personal, social, career and academic counseling services to all deaf and hard-of-hearing students at NTID/RIT. They provide transitional counseling to support students' academic, personal, and career growth.

To get in contact with NTID Counseling and Academic Advising Services, please fill out the contact form on their website.


Case Management
RIT’s Case Management team is available to assist students in connecting with long term or specialized mental health resources in the community when needed.


RIT Red Folder
The Red Folder is a resource that provides information on common indicators of student distress.