Students In Distress: Legal Obligations, Institutional Response & Case Studies Review
On-Demand Training
Challenge - Supporting distressed students
Working to support students in distress or demonstrating distressing behaviors is something that many in higher ed are passionate about but can be difficult due to a lack of understanding & training.
Key Takeaway
Understand the institution’s obligations to students experiencing and/or causing distress in our academic communities and how institutions may respond to them
Overview
According to a study by Penn State Student Affairs, “Students who reported that their mental health was negatively impacted by COVID-19 also reported higher levels mental health distress in seven areas (depression, generalized anxiety, social anxiety, eating concerns, hostility, alcohol use, and general distress), regardless of whether they sought services because of COVID-19.” The increase of stress and stressors has an impact on the individual and on the campus community, so it is more important than ever that higher ed faculty & staff know how to recognize, manage and support students in distress.
Adding to this issue, widespread layoffs in higher education at the start of the pandemic, coupled with the more recent “great resignation,” have cast many higher education professionals into new roles involving student conduct or working with their schools’ behavioral intervention team (BIT) and/or CARE or “students of concern” groups. In our increasingly litigious society, it is critical to prepare oneself for this work; as we have a personal responsibility and an institutional obligation to support students in distress.
After a brief review of the legal obligations that should guide institutional practices, we will dive into some “ripped from the headlines” scenarios and discuss the pros and cons of different response approaches.
Objectives
- Identify some of the factors that lead to distress in our students and on campus
- Understand the institution’s legal responsibility for responding to students in distress
- Articulate the factors they should (and shouldn’t) use when determining how to respond to a distressed or distressing student.
- Describe who should be “in the room” when decisions regarding addressing distressed and distressing students are made and why.
- Identify proactive and/or structural changes to their institutional practices and resources to better support struggling students.
- Administration
- Faculty
- Human Resources
- Student Services/Affairs
- Counseling Center Staff
- Any educator interested in learning more about working with a distressed or distressing student
J. Morgan Levy, J.D. enjoyed an almost twenty-year career in higher education administration prior to founding J. Morgan Levy Consulting, LLC in 2020. She began her love for all things higher ed as an undergraduate at Muhlenberg College in Allentown, PA where she earned a B.A. in history and served as a Residential Assistant and Orientation Leader. After graduating from Muhlenberg, Morgan traveled to SUNY Buffalo where she focused on alternative dispute resolution and obtained her law degree.
Morgan had the pleasure of working at New York University, Columbia University and the University of Rochester in student conduct, students of concern, disability services, affirmative action, and Title IX before her recent transition to full time business owner. She is passionate about helping students and institutions become the best version of themselves through the excavation and examination of barriers impeding their success.
Morgan lives in upstate New York with her husband and their four boys and two very spoiled dogs.
Bio current as of May 2022.
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What are the benefits of online training?
Cost-Effective: No travel required. Online Training is an innovative way to provide your entire faculty and staff with a variety of professional development opportunities for one low price! The more you train the more you save, as the registration fee is per institution, not per person.
Easy: You will receive a detailed list of instructions via email. If you run into any problems, we're always here to help.
Practical: Our training sessions focus on the most critical and relevant issues facing educators today. Our primary goal is to provide participants with the information, training, and skills necessary to immediately implement positive change at their institutions.
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Value Added: When you purchase an online training, you also receive a campus-wide access license to the recording for one year. Faculty and staff can access it as often as they like from any location.
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How can we use these trainings?
Flexible Training:
- Live: Promote and attend a live webinar and debrief immediately following.
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Staff Recognition: Develop a program around the webinar with monthly themes and recognize the staff members that implement the best idea related to the theme.
Team-Building: Utilize these trainings to develop cross-functional and cross-discipline teams to foster collegiality.
New Employee Training: Include the online training as part of your new employee training program to ensure consistency.
Implementation and Follow-Up: Use the guide and evaluation materials provided by Innovative Educators to plan, implement, and track your progress.
How much does a live webinar or on-demand training cost?
1 Training (Live Webinar or On-Demand Training) - $425 Unlimited connections, campus-wide access license to the recording for one year.
Package Pricing
- 3 Trainings - $900 Unlimited connections, recording for one year (campus-wide access)
- 6 Trainings - $1500 Unlimited connections, recording for one year (campus-wide access)
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What type of payment do you accept?
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Payment terms are net 90 days.
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Please mail checks and POs to our mailing address:
Innovative Educators
3277 Carbon Place
Boulder, CO 80301
What is your cancellation policy?
Below is a breakdown of our cancellation policy.
- 30 days prior: Full refund
- 14 days prior: $100 processing fee
- Fewer than 14 days: Credit toward another IE event. Please note that registration for the live webinar includes access to the recording which you can share, as it is a campus access license. We email the recording the Monday following the live event. For questions, please email us or call 303.955.0415.
What is included in the Go2K Membership?
Go2Knowledge is your turnkey solution for ongoing professional development in higher education. Your yearly membership includes unlimited access to approximately 150 live webinars and over 350 of our best on-demand training videos. Go2Knowledge can be customized in numerous ways (add your videos, curate our content, custom tracks, etc.) to meet your professional development needs. If you are interested in a customized option, please schedule a call.
Is the price for Go2K a one-time fee or an annual fee?
The purchase price for Go2K is an annual fee, which includes access to approximately 150 live events/year and 350+ on-demand training workshops.
Are certificates of completion available?
If you have a Go2K membership, your personal dashboard includes automated certificates of completion and can be printed or downloaded after completing the training. You also have a certificate summary that acts as a transcript for all of your completed training. If you do not have a Go2K membership, you can request a certificate of completion from support@ieinfo.org.
What kind of reporting is included?
We provide a monthly usage and evaluation report to the designated admin. Upon request, we can provide annual or bi-annual reports. Additionally, designated college administrators have full access to pull reports in real time.
How do staff members access our Go2K site?
After you purchase Go2K, we create a college site and send your specific Go2K url which you can distribute to everyone at the institution. College personnel then simply create a user login to access their personal dashboard. From the dashboard, they can search for specific training topics, register for upcoming live webinars, and view/print certificates of completion.
How do staff members access the on-demand training videos?
All on-demand training is available in a user’s personal dashboard. You can search for specific titles or use the catalog feature to find topics.
Can the Go2Knowledge platform be customized to include college created content or to create learning paths?
Yes. The Go2K platform is fully customizable. You can add your content, curate our content, and/or creating learning paths. This is a custom upgrade and comes at an additional cost. To learn more about custom options, please schedule a demo.
How are colleges using Go2O?
Colleges are using Go2O in a variety of ways:
- As a stand-alone online orientation
- As an online complement to their face-to-face orientation
- As an online orientation for their distance learners
- As an online enrollment checklist to ease the registration process
- As an online orientation for specific groups (TRIO, Transfer, International, etc.)
Does purchase of Go2O include completion reports?
You can receive completion reports two ways:
- Automated delivery (ftp dump, email, webhook)
- Instant access via administrative login
What is the registration checklist and is it included in my Go2O purchase?
The online enrollment checklist is designed to walk students through your enrollment process ensuring they make it to the first day of class! The registration checklist is one of the modules available with Go2O. Based on your purchasing level, the module can be a selection or will be included.
Are there various pricing options available for Go2O?
Yes, we have 4 pricing levels available.
- Starter
- Pro
- Premium
- Custom
Is Go2O ADA compliant and responsive?
Go2O is ADA accessible and fully responsive on any mobile device, tablet, or computer.
How are colleges using SL?
- Recruitment
- Probation/Interventions
- Career Readiness
- Learning Centers
- TRIO Programs
- IX Training
- IV Grants
- With Advisors & Counselors
- Extended Learning Institute
- FYE & Student Success Courses
- Orientation
- Online FYE Seminar
- Extra Credit
- Financial Aid Appeal
- College Level English Requirement
- Supplemental Instruction
- Target Online Learners
- Student Disability Office
- Writing Center
- Can be required by faculty
- Student Success Course
Which workshops are your top rated?
We take quality seriously, and so all of our workshops are top notch in terms of content and look. However, if we know how you plan to use StudentLingo (FYE, Retention, Probation, TRIO, etc.), we can make workshop recommendations.
Funding is a little tight, how many workshops can I get for $XX?
You can buy the entire StudentLingo package (50 workshops) or we offer several a la carte options. Unlike a lot of other software companies, we don’t charge per user, so we can work with any budget. We recommend talking to other departments on campus to increase your purchasing power and to share the cost. Also, we do have a pay model whereby students pay directly. If you are interested in learning more about this option, give us a call.
Is there an admin view?
This is a feature of our platform, but comes at an additional cost. With the admin view, you get access to more advanced reporting, and you have it in real time. With the standard membership, you get monthly reports.
How have other schools leveraged reporting?
- One of our partners, College of Southern Nevada, used StudentLingo to measure learning outcomes. in a study, one class had access to StudentLingo and the other cohort did not. 92% of the cohort with access to StudentLingo earned a whole letter grade higher than the cohort without StudentLingo.
- A lot of our partners use the data to justify funding for grants, operating dollars, or for new program development.
- The evaluation data is particularly useful in identifying what type of learning students prefer and the qualitative takeaways from viewing the workshop.
- Some of our partners use the data to connect with their student information system, like Banner or Peoplesoft.
- I think a great way to get started on how you want to use the data is to ask yourself some questions:
- How will I know if StudentLingo was successful?
- What do I hope students will gain from access to StudentLingo?
- What data is important for me to know in order to show that StudentLingo is a worthwhile purchase?
What is TutorLingo?
TutorLingo is a flexible tutor training plaform and can be purchased at the Bronze, Silver or Gold level to meet your training needs. Every level consists of a series of 9 Core online training modules that prepare tutors by providing the basic skills necessary to support their peers in becoming more independent and strategic learners. The Silver & Gold purchasing options include TLNow training and our Additional Level 1 or Level 2 training topics, all of which help to achieve Level 1 & 2 of the CRLA Certification. See our pricing guide for details.
Should the TutorLingo trainings be viewed in any particular order?
No, each training is a stand-alone workshop, and they can be viewed in any order.
Do you offer micro-credentialing for Tutoring Center staff?
Yes, we offer multiple micro-credentials which would serve Tutoring Center teams including Tutoring Center Administration, Mastering Service Excellence, Fostering A Culturally Responsive Campus Through Diversity, Equity & Inclusion and Supervisory Leadership: Maximizing Productivity & Staff Development.
What is the CRLA?
The CRLA is a group of student-oriented professionals active in the fields of reading, learning assistance, developmental education, tutoring, and mentoring. In 1989, the CRLA created a training program that is considered ‘best-practice’ for tutor training. A fews years ago, Innovative Educators partnered with the CRLA to create supplementary training modules. Our training supports learning centers in achieving level 1 certification through CRLA.
Do CRLA members receive a discount on TutorLingo?
Yes. CRLA members receive a 10% discount on TutorLingo.
Is there an Admin View?
Yes. The admin view is an upgrade and costs $500, but gives you the ability to access completion data more efficiently and in real time. If you don’t want the admin view, we provide monthly usage reports.
What is ParentLingo?
ParentLingo is a go-to resource that institutions can easily share with parents to encourage student independence, growth & success. ParentLingo is a shared resource that recognizes and includes parents as partners in the educational process.
What is the cost?
Please contact us for pricing information. Email alex@ieinfo.org or 504-206-6585.
What features are included?
Standard package:
- 8 Targeted Modules For Parents Branding (Logo On Every Page)
- ADA Compliant & Responsive Design
- Promotional Materials
- Registration (First Name, Last Name, Email)
Premier Package:
- 8 Targeted Modules For Parents Branding (Logo On Every Page)
- ADA Compliant & Responsive Design
- Promotional Materials
- Completion Reports & Standard Evaluations
- Custom Branding (Logo & Institutional Photos)
- 3 Additional Registration Points
- Add & Edit Custom Content
- Customizable Evaluations & Surveys Advanced Reporting
- Designated Instructional Designer
- Flexible Pricing (College Payment Option Or Parents Pay Directly)