2021 Cohort
15
edits
Changes
Added the first major priority for the 2021 cohort.
<big><big>'''UNF 2021 UIF Cohort Strategic Priorities'''</big></big>
''As a Preface: Mental Health is a serious issue on campus that we would like to address, especially after this past year and a half of the COVID-19 pandemic; many of our projects focus on addressing mental health and the struggles that are sometimes inherent to it, in order to provide a grounding for facilitating innovation on campus. ''
<big>'''''Strategic Priority 1: Therapeutics to Promote Morale '''''
''Project Leaders: Kathryn Fox, Keegan Colunga''
As is common to the college experience, UNF students often find themselves overwhelmed amidst the host of classes, meetings, extracurricular involvements, etc. that they engage in. Burnout is a very real consequence of this aspect of the student's life going unmodulated. In addition, this may manifest itself differently in students, as stress management is not a universal skill; providing a mode by which students can de-stress or otherwise participate in therapeutic resources on campus is arguably paramount to ensuring students make the most of their time in college.
One way this could take place is by hosting a dedicated event whereby people can bring 'therapy dogs' on campus - in essence providing a space where students can simply de-stress by interacting with the animals. There is much research to back up its efficacy as a therapy method, and it is also a low-cost and low-commitment resource for students as well. In addition, this could also serve as a forum for those with service animals to educate others on proper etiquette, as an effort to raise awareness. We could also use this idea for self-report data to determine its value, using such metrics as students' stress level and grades, to see if there is any causal relationship between the idea and improved performance in academics or otherwise.