It’s the last thing any campus administrator, counselor, or psychologist wants to think
about: the death of a student.
Whether related to physical or mental health challenges, poor decision-making, or unexplained circumstances, the loss of any young life is tragic and difficult to prepare for. As seen on several college campuses this past fall, when the light of a student—our brightest hope—is snuffed out prematurely, it can be devastating.
Any responsible campus crisis plan must include provisions for dealing
with student death. Regardless of circumstances, how a campus responds can make
all the difference to both the immediate family and the greater campus community that suddenly finds itself in mourning.
Inevitably, community and individual reactions will be varied and will elicit a wide range of responses. How will you deal with public reaction? How will you address questions from students and support them through their grief process? How will you respect and offer both support and information to the affected families? How will you respond to media inquiries and national press coverage? Every institution must be fully prepared to deal with a variety of possible tragedies, scenarios, and proactive responses.
This webinar will offer an overview of grief theory, as well as plans for how administrators can respond to student death on campus. Participants will review the stages of grief, consider extremely sensitive situations such as suicide, and devise concrete plans for dealing with the aftermath of such a tragedy.
Participants will:
- Review the stages of grief
- Understand the importance of “helping the helpers”
- Learn about special considerations when coping with suicide
- Review scenarios that involve complicated grief responses
- Devise plans for outreach to faculty and the classroom
- Discuss the importance of hosting memorials
- Review student death checklists
- Leave with grief handouts and trauma information
- 2-year & 4-year institutions
- President
- Vice President of Academic Affairs/Instruction
- Vice President of Student Affairs
- Dean of Instruction
- Dean of Student Services/Affairs
- Faculty (full and part-time)
- Advising
- Counseling
- Residence Life
- Student Life
- Communications
