Connection is Prevention:
National Suicide Prevention Week
Sept. 6-11, 2021

Suicide prevention and mental health are hot topics on campuses across the US today, and always. RIT is no different. Join the campus in supporting our fifth annual Connection is Prevention: National Suicide Prevention Week.

We can all play a role by having real conversations about mental health, reminding someone that they are cared for, or by letting someone know about resources within our community – it only takes one moment to make a connection.

Throughout the week, we invite you to connect with yourself and one another:

• Honor Bead Art Installation Kick-off
  Tuesday, Sept. 7  |  12-3 p.m.  |  Campus Center Breezeway

• Talk Saves Lives: An Introduction to Suicide Prevention in the LGBTQ Community with the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention (AFSP)
  Wednesday, Sept. 8  |  6-7:30 p.m.  |  Student Development Center (1300/1310)

• Fresh Check Day
  Thursday, Sept. 9  |  10 a.m.-3 p.m.  |  Campus Center Breezeway

Mental Health Support at RIT

College can be stressful, and at times overwhelming. Counseling and Psychological Services is here to support your mental health needs during your time at RIT. The Counseling and Psychological Services office is located on the second floor of the August Center, just off the Quarter Mile. Additionally, there are various CaPS Embedded Locations across campus and counselors that communicate in sign language.

If you or a friend is struggling, reach out.

On-campus Resources

Counseling and Psychological Services offers short-term, 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.

Community Emergency Resources

• National Suicide Prevention Hotline: 1-800-273-8255
• Text HOME to 741741
• Lifeline/Mobile Crisis: call 211
• Emergency: 911

Community Mental Health Resources

• Mental Health Association
• NAMI (National Alliance on Mental Illness)
• American Foundation for Suicide Prevention

Free On-Campus COVID-19 Vaccination Clinic

Wegmans will be on campus to provide the COVID-19 vaccine to students, faculty, and staff ages 18+ on Wednesday, September 8 from 10 a.m.-2 p.m. in the Student Alumni Union – Alumni Room (SAU 1500). The two shot Pfizer and single shot Johnson & Johnson vaccines will be available at this clinic (while supplies last).

If you receive the Pfizer vaccine, you can sign up to receive your second dose on campus on September 28. Please note you are “fully vaccinated” two weeks after your final dose of the COVID-19 vaccine.

If you are unable to make the clinic, vaccination site resources are available to help you locate COVID-19 vaccine options in the area.

Make friends by working on yourself!

Do you want to meet people and make new friends? Try being more approachable. Viktor Sander B.Sc., B.A. gives tips on how to be more approachable, and how to appear friendlier.

To be more approachable, practice having a friendly facial expression, avoiding acting busy when you’re not, use open body language, practice comfortable eye contact, and limit phone usage in social scenarios.

To look more friendly, relax your face, practice a casual smile, try thinking of something that makes you happy, and smile with your eyes (especially now in social settings that require masks indoors).

An inviting smile or attentive head nod could communicate to people that you are approachable and ready to chat.

Each week, we are sharing a financial wellness tip to help you make the connection between financial management decisions, your overall wellness, and student success. Money touches every aspect of our lives, and a lack of financial literacy can cause unnecessary stress and negatively impact one’s mental and physical health.

A budget is a spending plan based on your income and expenses. Simply put, it’s an estimate of how much money you’ll make and spend over a certain period of time. Budgeting isn’t about depriving yourself; it’s about taking control of your money – that includes money for fun stuff, too!

Budgeting encourages you to live within your means and put your money to work in the best way possible. Think of a budget as a steppingstone to your financial goals. A budget can help you:

• Understand your relationship with money. Tracking your income and expenses paints a clear picture of how much you have to save or spend. Once you identify patterns, you can see where to make adjustments.

• Save enough for the future. A good budget has you earmark money for an emergency fund and savings goals like a vacation, new car, paying off student loans, or proactively thinking about your future financial goals.

• Get — or stay — out of debt. Mapping out expenses in advance reduces the risk of overspending and can help you pay off debt you may already have.

• Relieve stress. Budgeting isn’t a cure-all, but it can help you manage financial decisions and prepare for challenges.

Check back next week for tips on how to develop and manage your budget!

For additional events and event information, go to rit.edu/events.