Healthy Campus Week Promotes Wellness With Variety of Events

NC State students who want to learn more about various ways to care for their health and wellness throughout their college journey will have many options in late September. 

From Sept. 23-27, Campus Health and other key campus partners are bringing Healthy Campus Week, a week-long series of programs and events designed to educate students about various health topics, back to NC State. 

“We’re excited to bring this week back and encourage health-enhancing behaviors with fun and engaging events for the campus community on a wide range of wellness topics,” said Campus Health Educator Daniel Passonno. “Healthy Campus Week is an initiative led by the American College Health Association and is observed by various college campuses during this week. This week takes place about a month after the start of classes where students have their routine and are now able to take a moment to focus on and prioritize their wellbeing while connecting with a variety of campus resources that aim to support well-being.”

The week will kick off programming about sexual health, consent and healthy relationships on Monday evening with Sex in the Dark. From 6-7:30 p.m. in the Talley Ocracoke ballroom, students can anonymously ask any questions regarding sexual health, sexuality, relationships and other related topics to a panel of experts or just listen and learn. Prior to that, participants can learn about campus and community resources about sexual health from 5-6 p.m. in Talley 3285 before the questions in Ocracoke. 

“The Sex in the Dark program is completely anonymous and is an open space where students can receive reliable answers to their questions regarding these important topics,” Passonno said. 

“Tasty Tuesday” will feature an informational session in Carmichael Gym’s teaching kitchen from 2-4 p.m., led by Soo Umm, one of Campus Health’s registered dietitians. 

Students will learn kitchen skills such as knife safety, timing, meal prep, etc. 

“We have hosted cooking demonstration events in the past and they have been very successful. Students enjoy events where they can be hands-on, learn different cooking skills, and try the food they made afterward. They can also learn about nutrition from a registered dietitian and ask any questions they may have about food.” Passonno said. 

Wednesday will feature “Watch Your BAC” from 2-4 p.m. on Wolf Plaza, led by Prevention Services and the Mental Health Ambassadors, which discusses risk reduction strategies and helps students understand how drink sizes and quality can impact blood alcohol concentration.  

Staff from Prevention Services’ Alcohol and Other Drug Prevention Education group will demonstrate drink pouring with lemonade to teach students what a standardized drink is and how to understand how much alcohol they could be consuming without realizing it.

“We recognize that there are students who are using substances, and the recovery community wants to support harm reduction and encourage other students to be able to make healthier choices,” said Laurie Capps Bolster, Prevention Services’ alcohol, other drug and recovery coordinator. “We want to change the conversation about substances and have it be something that the campus can talk about openly so ultimately we can reduce risks as a community.” 

Thursday will see the return of one of Healthy Campus Week’s biggest events, “Fresh Check Day,” led by Prevention Services for the third straight year. 

This Jordan Porco Foundation mental health promotion event is meant specifically for college students to provide a framework with booth themes that start conversations around mental health and reduce stigma. 

From 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Stafford Commons, students can visit various booths run by campus partners that feature activities and giveaways centered around mental health and well-being and have conversations with staff and peers about the different themes they’re focused on. NC State Dining will provide food, and Campus Health will provide ice cream. 

Emily Anderson, Prevention Services’ outreach and resilience coordinator, explained that this event pairs with September as Suicide Prevention Awareness Month and Prevention Services hopes to start the semester with a strong statement about the importance of the value of mental health on campus. 

“As a campus, we are very invested in supporting the whole student and we want students to see how mental health is valued by campus departments beyond Prevention and Counseling” Anderson said. “We know that one of the biggest barriers for connecting with resources is that initial step of reaching out. We hope students will use this opportunity to make a connection with different departments that they might be considering in a fun and approachable format.”

Healthy Campus Week will wrap up Friday with a session on the importance of movement and physical activity, featuring a yoga class from 12:30-1:15 p.m. in Research Building IV, Suite 1700.