Care

Bring Care to Your Community

Support your students' mental health.

Communicate with CARE

If you're concerned about something a student's said, a change in their behavior, or if they've reached out to you for support, approach the conversation with a calm, open, and reflective perspective. If you're not sure where to start or what to say, remember CARE.

C: Connect

Connect one-on-one when you notice these signs or anytime you're concerned.

A: Actively Listen

Practice active listening during this conversation.

How to Practice Active Listening

R: Respond with Compassion

Respond with patience and understanding. Let your student know you care.

E: End with a Next Step

Encourage your student to get help and suggest resources. Offer the level of help and support you can.

Ways to Help

Use these steps to check in with a student or respond to a student's concerns.

Inviting a Student to Talk

Setting: try for one-on-one whenever possible

Tone: casual, concerned, open, curious

Phrases that can help:

I’ve noticed... Give examples of what you’ve noticed like: You’ve missed a lot of class lately, you’re falling asleep in class, you’re last few exams have gone differently.
I’m concerned about... refer to the specific statement, behavior
Give them the option to talk: Is this something you want to talk about?
If not, gently let them know there are lots of kinds of support that you can help them connect with if they want.

Responding to a Student

Setting: suggest meeting one-on-one whenever possible

Tone: calm, reflective, validating, collaborative

Goal: encourage help-seeking or choose a next step together

Phrases that can help:

Thank you for sharing this with me. That does sound tough. Would you like to brainstorm some next steps?
I’m glad you reached out. There’s good support on campus. I’ll help you connect with it.
I hear that you feel hopeless/helpless right now. I think our counseling center can help. Let’s go over there together.
I can tell you’re very upset, and I’m concerned about you. Let’s get you connected with someone who can help you stay safe.

DO

Stay calm, curious, and compassionate
Listen with empathy without trying to fix the problem
Ask how, when, what questions (how did that happen, when did you start feeling that way, what’s important about this to you) or simply say, “Tell me more.”
Paraphrase what they’re saying

AVOID

Trying to fix the situation or jump in with a solution
Platitudes, “at least” “you have so much going for you” “everything will be okay”
Judgment of what they’re saying and their experience
Telling them their perspective is wrong.
A big reaction
Why questions, especially those that suggest the feelings aren’t valid like “Why is this bothering you?” or “Why are you so sensitive about that?”

When a student shares something difficult or vulnerable, acknowledge that. Tell them something like, “Thank you so much for sharing this with me, I know that was probably hard to do.” This can make a big difference in how seen, heard, and validated someone feels.

Ask how you can support them in this moment. Sometimes we think we know what’s best for someone, but most of the time we don’t. Try questions like:

Do you want me to listen?
Are you looking for feedback or solutions?
Can I help you find resources/

Responding with compassion when you're concerned about suicide:

If the thought enters your mind at all that a student may be suicidal, having suicidal thoughts, or at risk for suicide, ask them: “Are you thinking about suicide?”

This is probably the part of the conversation that will be most uncomfortable to you. Don’t let that stop you. Ask anyway because this is also one of the most important parts of this conversation.

Counselor tip: Practice saying, “Are you thinking about suicide?” out loud. Choose a friend or another family member to roleplay with and take turns asking the question.

How faculty and staff can play a role in suicide prevention.

Responding with compassion when you're concerned about drugs or alcohol:

If you're concerned that someone's using drugs but you don't know, it's okay to ask, "Are you using any drugs?" Try to approach this without assuming that they are using drugs or how much they may be using. Avoid judgment, lectures, or labels like "addict" during this conversation.

How to start a conversation about addiction.

Responding with compassion when you're concerned about relationship violence or abuse:

Let your student know you are there to help them get support. Try to follow their lead - ask them how they feel things are going or what they're thinking of doing about any relationship concerns they may have.

If your student is open to help, connect them with support like Survivor Support Services.

Ways faculty and staff can fight sexual violence on campus.

Whatever a student's going through, you don’t have to help them through it alone. Encourage them to get support, whether that’s from the family, friends, a mental health professional, etc. Take a collaborative approach with your student and offer to come up with a plan for their next steps together.

Counselor tip: Offer to go with them, ask who is a supportive person in their life that could go with them, schedule a time to follow up and check in on how it went

Care in Your Community

When we talk about mental health, wellbeing, and resources, we help create an atmosphere of psychological safety and reduce barriers to students reaching out for help, whether that’s with you or a campus resource.   