Mental Health Matters Newsletter
Newsletter by the Mental Health Task Force
The SUNY WCC Mental Health Task Force is raising awareness of mental health by sharing resources through the Mental Health Matters Newsletter. No matter what your role is on/off campus (student, faculty, staff member, or other employee), there is an opportunity for you to learn and connect with others as an advocate for mental health awareness.
This newsletter will be shared twice a year and archived on this page. Please stay tuned for more resources shared by SUNY WCC’s Mental Health Task Force. Connect with us by email at MHTF@sunywcc.edu.
The Mental Health Matters Newsletter is open to your submissions!
Share your mental health tip or idea for an in-depth story.
Current Newsletter
Vol. 2, Issue 1 – May 2022
Mission
The Mental Health Task Force at SUNY Westchester Community College is a multidisciplinary team of faculty, staff, and students who use a holistic, public health framework to assess the current culture and services related to student mental health. The Task Force’s development and utilization of a strategic plan will support the goal of enhancing the quality and accessibility of mental health and wellness services, information, programs, and resources across the SUNY WCC community.This is the May 2022 edition of our newsletter, thank you for reading!

Equity in Mental Health on Campus Update
As Co-Chairs of the Equity in Mental Health on Campus (EMHC) initiative at Westchester Community College, we would like to update our community about our charge and the work we have been doing since the start of the academic year. EMHC is an 18-month commitment, organized by The Steve Fund, to enhance the student experience of students of color by supporting mental health and well-being. The WCC Steering Committee was convened by President Miles, with input from the Department of Mental Health and Counseling Services and the Mental Health Task Force, that brings you this newsletter.Read More
The EMHC Steering Committee membership is comprised of interdisciplinary faculty and interdepartmental staff. The charge of this committee is an extension of the ongoing efforts on campus to improve the learning environment of our students and the overall campus climate by assessing mental health needs. Mental health is health, and health is necessary for student success! As we wrap up the first academic year’s effort in this area, we will be responding to the Needs Assessment report conducted in collaboration with The Steve Fund researchers. Through this process we learned that WCC is ahead of the curve in many ways, such as with mental health programming, diversity committee work and initiatives. Yet, we anticipate learning further about areas of growth, new directions we can take and continuing the good work we’ve been doing for our community.
Do mental health and equity issues interest you?
- We are looking for student representatives to join our committee or provide input into this work. If you will be enrolled Fall 2022, please email Heidi Báez at heidi.baez@sunywcc.edu.
- If you are faculty or staff and would like to join our effort, we would welcome your participation, either by getting out the word, or joining in a more formal capacity. To express interest, you can also contact Heidi Báez at heidi.baez@sunywcc.edu.
Your Equity in Mental Health on Campus Co-Chairs,
Heidi M. Báez and Jayson Brito
EMHC Tip: How can we support mental health holistically? One faculty tip we offer is adding the following language to your syllabus. Sharing this information with students helps to normalize help seeking practices, when the services we offer are brought to the forefront of student wellness.
Westchester Community College recognizes that student mental health and wellbeing is key to academic success. The Department of Mental Health & Counseling Services provides free and confidential mental health support to WCC students. Whether you are interested in individual therapy, group support, mental health trainings and workshops, or just want to know more about mental health, DMHCS is here for you!
Connect with us!
- Email: MentalHealthServices@sunywcc.edu
- Phone: 914-606-7431
- Instagram: @WCCMentalHealth
- On-campus: Mental Health & Counseling Services Suite (Student Center 190/next to Health Office)
- Students can Request an Appointment right on our website.
- Department of Mental Health & Counseling Services
- Support Groups
- TAO (Therapy Assistance Online) Self-help Platform
- Anonymous Stress and Depression Questionnaire
- Community Resources

Student Highlight: The Rabbit Hole
By Sophia Myers, English/Humanities Major, Class of 2025
Hi, my name is Sophia. I enjoy chicken nuggets shaped like dinosaurs, people watching, and laughing for absolutely no reason at all. I also enjoy mismatching my socks and shopping at hot topic for septum piercings, because I like knowing that everyone can tell I'm queer. Though, I don't allow myself to cry as often as I need to. My hobbies include editing my life story, hiding behind metaphors, and trying to convince my shadow that I'm someone worth following.Read More
I am always saying the wrong thing at the wrong time. For example, I try to say “thank you for loving me”, but what comes out is “I’m sorry I am so hard to love”. My trauma bubbles and stickies in my stomach, and I am afraid it will get all over your hands. How do I talk about the rabbit hole without accidentally inviting you down it?
Since the age of 15 I have been heavily struggling with mental illness.
There are some days I feel so depressed I cannot leave my house. On these days, I test my gut. I kiss my brother’s fingerprint which is melded onto a silver pendant that Becky gave me at the last annual 4th of July party. Which, we had to stop having because grandmother’s cake never quite tastes the same when AJ isn’t there.
I am far too young to be so familiar with the pain accompanying death. When we got the news that my brother killed himself, I used extreme and unhealthy ways to cope. A big part of growing up for me after he passed was getting high in some strangers' garage. I’d drink a vodka sprite and call it tribute instead of coping. I’d try a new drug each day, and call myself a scientist, not an addict. I joked about drug addiction so often it became difficult to tell the difference between a punchline and a promise.
I was 17 when I got the news of the multiple overdoses and ultimate deaths lying within my old friend group.
There were days that I couldn't find the sun even though it was right outside my window. On those days I was so sad I couldn’t remember what it was like not to be. Almost like, when you have a bad cold and you forget how to breathe through your nose, and you're so sure you'll never breathe through your nose again. Except, when you have a cold you can call in sick to work, and people tell you to get well soon, and there is a whole soup genre dedicated to your well-being. I can't call in "sad" to work. I can't go to the grocery store and go to the "sad aisle" which would probably contain already stale cheetos and tea which your mom swears is good for you.
Now, when I have these feelings, I'll write to him instead of doing something harmful. More often than not, I find myself writing about him, rather to him. It’s easier to write ghost stories than to write to a ghost. It feels odd to say his name in the beginning, because it was always about the end.
Dear AJ, I'd write; Don’t read my letters during the day - read them at night, by a candle, in the playroom of our childhood home. Right by the television, but make sure it’s dark outside - watch the moonlight drip off tree leaves, listen to the bugs swarm the light by the chipped porch, and smell that sweet scent that only seems to be found in the summer. I want you to see the stars, see the flicker of the burning candle, and feel the beat of my heart.
Now that he is gone, I am trying to figure something out about our current mental health crises. Maybe part of it is out of my own selfishness and fears, but I refuse to sit by and not do anything. I hope through this, anyone can understand that they are not alone in this insanely difficult battle. If we hear, care, and genuinely try to understand one another, a difference will be made.
One time, at a poetry slam, a kid came up to me after I read one of my pieces and said he decided to keep living. From that day forward I thought, today is a good day to keep someone alive. So, I write until my hands feel blistered. I write until I run out of things to write about.

Mental Health Tips from SUNY WCC Faculty and Staff
I'd like to healthily challenge us all to think of ways we can incorporate self-care without breaking the bank. Incorporate self-care into your routine that doesn't involve spending money!Read More
- In the media and our socialization, we can be tricked into thinking that self-care involves some of the following activities: getting your hair or nails done, paying for an expensively promising gym membership, going on expensive trips, having plans every weekend with friends, eating out at restaurants, etc. Unfortunately, this lifestyle becomes unsustainable, can greatly affect your pocket and inability to keep up with your finances and lifestyle, and thus, even affect your mental health.
I'd like to healthily challenge us all to think of ways we can incorporate self-care without breaking the bank. This can include: having a consistent morning or night routine that will get you ready for the day or relaxation, communicating your boundaries and needs at home so you can have more time for yourself, listening to your favorite music when completing a stressful task for work or school, finding enjoyable activities to do alone or with friends that don't involve spending, being intentional about what (and who) you make time for.
Are there other ways you think self-care and finances can overlap to promote greater mental health? Would love to hear your thoughts in the next newsletter!
- The best advice I ever heard: EAT WHEN YOU'RE HUNGRY.
- Affirmations from a Kindergartener:
- You gotta say your affirmations in your mouth and your heart. You say, “I am brave of this meeting!”, “I am loved!”, “I smell good!”, and you can say five or three or ten times, until you know it.
- You gotta walk big. You gotta mean it. Like dolly on a dinosaur. Because you got it.”
- Never put a skunk on a bus.
- Think about the donuts of your day! Even if you cry a little, you can think about potato chips!
- You gotta take a deep breath and you gotta do it again.
- Even if it’s a yucky day, you can get a hug.
- Don’t get distracted and your feet will stay on the sidewalk and not too full of snow.

Mental Health Tips from SUNY WCC Students
- Write everything down. Feelings, to-dos, ideas for life. Declutter your mind into something in front of you so that they are easier to sort out.
- Try not to get caught up with things out of your control. How others treat you is their path. What others think about you is their path. You can’t control that. Their perspective isn't yours. The only thing you can control is your actions and reactions. Do whatever defines you and more importantly, whatever makes you happy. That determines your path.
Send Us Your Tips
Are there certain things you do to help your mental health? What do you do for self-care? How do you show yourself some self-compassion? We want to hear from YOU: students, faculty, AND staff. Westchester Community College, the Mental Health Task Force is collecting mental health tips from faculty, staff, and students. Please submit your tips here: : Mental Health Tips Submission Form We are excited to learn more mental health tips from everyone.Archived Newsletters
Vol. 1, Issue 2 - September 2021
MHTF - Mental Health Task Force Newsletter
Vol. 1, Issue 2 - September 2021 - download PDF HERE
Mission
The Mental Health Task Force at Westchester Community College is a multidisciplinary team of faculty, staff, and students who use a holistic, public health framework to assess the current culture and services related to student mental health. The Task Force’s development and utilization of a strategic plan will support the goal of enhancing the quality and accessibility of mental health and wellness services, information, programs, and resources across the Westchester Community College community.Top stories in this newsletter
September is Suicide Prevention Month!
WCC faculty and staff can take the free QPR training to learn ways of supporting someone struggling with thoughts of suicide. Sign up here WCC students can sign up for our Help a Friend Training to learn ways of supporting their peers through these thoughts and feelings. Sign up here
Welcome
“Back to campus,” “back to normal,” “the new normal,” -- however you are referring to this time in your life as a WCC community member, we are with you! Maybe you are excited for this new chapter of reemergence. Perhaps you are feeling anxious, uncertain, or overwhelmed. However you are feeling right now, you are not alone. Change is scary and after 18+ months of isolation, fear, and loss, it is understandable that you may not feel prepared for the next phase of our Westchester Community College journey.Read More
Spring 2021 Update
The Mental Health Task Force has had a busy Spring 2021 semester working on various ways to promote conversations and education around mental health. An important goal the MHTF had was to launch a website and e-mail address, which both went live in March: Website: https://www.sunywcc.edu/student-services/mental-health-services/mentalhealth-task-force/ E-mail: MHTF@sunywcc.edu The website is designed to share information specific to the MHTF with the college community. The e-mail address is meant for initiatives pertaining to the MHTF. The MHTF is excited to have these new ways of promoting mental health to our fellow Vikings. As part of the college’s 75th Anniversary celebrations, the MHTF is launching 75 tips on ways to sustain and improve positive mental health practices. This is a continuation of our “Mental Health Tip of the Month” feature and will continue throughout the college’s milestone anniversary year. Also in March, we completed the JED Campus Life Skills Inventory. This inventory allowed us to see what programs we offer that discuss various life skills, such as mindfulness and stress management, and gaps we can possibly fill with programming in the upcoming academic school year. Related to programming already in place, several support groups and trainings for students were held regularly throughout the semester, such as Healthy Relationships Group, Grief Support Group, and Help a Friend Training. For faculty and staff, the Personal Counseling Department continued their successful Supporting Students in Distress Training, with a renewed focus on how to help support students in a remote environment. Finally, in May, the MHTF publicized free mental health crisis intervention training for faculty and staff sponsored by SUNY which focuses on how to help someone dealing with suicidal ideation. The training centers on three steps, QPR: Question, Persuade, Refer. The training takes less than an hour and results in a two-year certification. Here’s how faculty and staff can sign up: Go to the QPR account page: https://www.qprtraining.com/setup.php Enter “SUNY” in the “Organization Code” field. Create your free training account using your @sunywcc.edu email address. Follow the instructions to complete the training.
In the News
MICROAGGRESSIONS: An Uncomfortable Conversation but a Necessary One
On May 25, 2021, Westchester Community College was fortunate to have J. Luke Wood, one of the leading experts in microaggressions, speak to our college community. The discussion consisted of defining microaggressions as well as discussing the framework that he developed with Frank Harris III.Read More

Upcoming Events
For Students
Navigating the New Semester Tuesday, August 24, at 2:00 p.m. Helping a Friend Training Wednesday, August 25, at 1:00 p.m.Read More
For Faculty/Staff
Employee Wellbeing Support with NY Project Hope Thursday, September 2, at 4:00 p.m. Supporting Students in Distress Training Thursday, September 16, at 4:00 p.m. Employee Wellbeing Support with NY Project Hope Thursday, September 16, at 4:00 p.m. Employee Wellbeing Support with NY Project Hope Thursday, October 7, at 4:00 p.m. Supporting Students in Distress Training Thursday, October 21, at 4:00 p.m. Employee Wellbeing Support with NY Project Hope Thursday, October 21, at 4:00 p.m. Employee Wellbeing Support with NY Project Hope Thursday, November 4, at 4:00 p.m. Employee Wellbeing Support with NY Project Hope Thursday, November 18, at 4:00 p.m. Employee Wellbeing Support with NY Project Hope Thursday, December 2, at 4:00 p.m.
Mental Health Tip of the Month
As the summer begins to wind down, it is time to think about switching gears into back-to-school mode. This time of year typically brings excitement as well as feelings of anticipation, worry and even stress, particularly as our community continues to grapple with the challenges we endured during the pandemic. Here are a few tips to keep in mind to set yourself up for success in the coming school year.Read More
- Create a routine – setting up a daily routine can help organize and manage your time.
- Prioritize sleep - good sleep habits help maintain physical and mental health. Getting plenty of sleep can reduce the effects of stress on the body and help boost the immune system.
- Eat a healthy diet - including fresh fruits and vegetables and whole grains. Healthy food can boost your energy levels, ability to focus and memory function.
- Check in with a campus counselor - WCC provides an amazing support system for students. Don’t be afraid to ask for help.
- Stay connected with others - Get involved with student clubs, sports or activities. Social connection can decrease anxiety and depression and help us regulate our emotions.
- Practice mindfulness - Activities such as meditation and deep breathing are proven to be helpful in managing stress.
- Reward yourself - Whether this is your first or last semester or somewhere in between, you made it here. You are on the right pathway to reach your goals.
Send Us Your Tips
Are there certain things you do to help your mental health? What do you do for self-care? How do you show yourself some self-compassion? We want to hear from YOU: students, faculty, AND staff. In honor of the 75th anniversary of Westchester Community College, the Mental Health Task Force is collecting mental health tips from faculty, staff, and students. Our goal is to collect 75 mental health tips to be published in an upcoming newsletter. Please submit your tips here: : 75 Mental Health Tips Submission Form We are excited to learn more mental health tips from everyone.Vol. 1, Issue 1 - April 2021
MHTF - Mental Health Task Force Newsletter
Vol. 1, Issue 1 - April 2021 - download PDF HERE
Mission
The Mental Health Task Force at Westchester Community College is a multidisciplinary team of faculty, staff, and students who use a holistic, public health framework to assess the current culture and services related to student mental health. The Task Force’s development and utilization of a strategic plan will support the goal of enhancing the quality and accessibility of mental health and wellness services, information, programs, and resources across the Westchester Community College community.
Meet the Mental Health Task Force - MHTF
The Mental Health Task Force (MHTF) at Westchester Community College uses a public health framework to address issues like mental health, suicide prevention, and substance use within the WCC community. The work of the MHTF focuses on a campus cultural shift towards education, de-stigmatization, and prevention. The framework utilized by MHTF is the JED Holistic Model.MHTF Members
- Pat Sheehan, LMHC (Co-Chair), Personal Counseling Department
- Kristy Robinson, LCSW (Co-Chair), Personal Counseling Department
- Dr. Shawn Brown, Chief of Staff and Vice President of Strategic Operations
- Dr. Rachele Hall, Department of Student Involvement
- Dr. Ray Houston, Dean, School of Mathematics, Science, and Engineering
- Dr. Karen Taylor, Dean, School of Arts, Humanities, and Social Sciences
- Adam Frank, Dean, Student Life
- Ashlee Pierce, Viking ROADS Opportunity Program
- Dorothy Posada, Strategic Marketing and Communications
- Blakeley Lowry, School of Health Careers, Technology and Applied Learning
- Jade Watts, Personal Counseling Department
- Walesca Marmolejos, LMSW, Personal Counseling Department
- Sophia Piñeiro, Student Support Services
- Gianna Jimenez, SGA President 2020-2021

In the News
Are you prepared?
As a school dean I often receive emails and sometimes texts after hours, it is part of the position I hold. In early December, I received a text on a Monday night around 8:00 p.m. from an instructor explaining that she had a student who had thought about suicide over the weekend and the student was reaching out to her and what advice could I give. My immediate reaction was, “I got this, I am a member of the WCC Mental Health Task Force, I know what to do” but, I soon realized I was not prepared to handle the situation. I went to the college website and looked under Personal Counseling for the phone numbers of agencies. (Thank God, we now have Personal Counseling right on the front page, so I didn’t have to search.) I talked with the professor as to whether the student was in immediate danger and if so then she should call 911. The instructor said the student’s home situation was not good and calling 911 could make it worse. So, I ended up giving the faculty member some numbers of agencies that the student should call that night. The student agreed that she could and would make a call. I know that as a school dean, I cannot be prepared for everything that comes my way, but this situation really hit home and I decided that I was never going to be underprepared again for a life and death situation. That is when I signed up for the Mental Health First Aid Training course. It is an intense training that lasts six hours and every hour was worth my time. Throughout the day we discussed types of mental disorders and read scenarios of situations and how to handle them. I learned what mental health first aid is, what mental health first aiders do, the ALGEE action plan, and to put the important phone numbers in my phone. The Personal Counseling Department offered two of these Mental Health First Aid Courses – one in December and the one in January that I participated in – virtually of course. In my course, there were full-time faculty, adjunct faculty, and staff. I thought a good cross section of people on campus. However, I also thought that we as a college, as a community who cares about our students and each other that this course should be mandatory for all. Even without the added stress of the Pandemic, there are people hurting and being stigmatized for having mental health challenges. While I hope I am never in the situation of a late-night text asking for help from a student contemplating suicide, at least now I know what to do. Wouldn’t you like to be prepared also? Karen Taylor, Ed.D. Dean of the School of Arts, Humanities, and Social Sciences
Upcoming Events
For Students
- COPING: Mental Health Support Group Thursday’s at 6:00 p.m. through May 13
- Healthy Relationships Group Tuesday’s at 6:00 p.m. through May 11
- Grief Support Group Wednesday, April 14 at 11:30 a.m.
- Help a Friend Training Thursday, April 15 at 5:00 p.m.
- Success from Head to Toe Group Wednesday, April 28 at 11:30 a.m. Zoom Link Meeting ID: 947 5978 4148 Passcode: 906753
For Faculty/Staff
- Supporting Students in Distress Training Thursday’s at 6:00 p.m. through May 1
