Student outreach groups receive varied responses

It has been reported in the past few years that an estimated 37 percent of Americans between the ages of 15 and 24 suffer from mental illness, according to The Chronicle of Higher Education. Whether suffering from depression, anxiety or learning disabilities, the additional stress of classes, papers, extra-curriculars and social life can be difficult for any college student to handle.

Two programs are stepping up as Tufts' examples to make the campus a more supportive environment for students. Both Ears for Peers and the Student Sexual Assault Response Assistance (SSARA) are designed to provide outreach to students in emotional distress. While Ears for Peers usage has increased in recent weeks, SSARA has not yet evolved into a campus presence.

SSARA is designed to focus on a variety of issues. These range from culturally sensitive information sessions about sexual violence within different ethnic groups to the topic of women-to-women violence. Calls to the hotline are answered by students who have received formal training, and counselors are always accessible to help out.

So far, phone calls to SSARA have been few and far between, which has left some counselors feeling frustrated. "The most frustrating thing is that despite advertising a lot of people don't know about us since it's just started," counselor and senior Leah Reveley said.

Since SSARA is in its beginning stages it's going to take time for people to feel more aware and comfortable with using the service, Women's Center Director Peggy Barrett said. Over time SSARA will help to increase student awareness on issues of sexual assault, harassment and abuse, she said.

Ears for Peers' main focus is to give students a place where someone will listen to their concerns, based on understanding the caller's particular situation. "We are really into empathy, before we even tell them what to do we try to get them to talk about it," according to one source who wished to remain anonymous.

Counselors with Ears for Peers feel that anonymity is a way to make students more comfortable with using the service.

Ears for Peers has experienced a rise in the number of calls per night recently, largely due to efforts by the student volunteers to advertise more across campus. It has approached advanced psychology and child development classes, Peer Academic Leaders, and has tried chalking on campus to boost membership and increase awareness of the service.

Ears for Peers does not compile numbers in terms of how many people use the service from year to year. Rather, the "Ears" focus on providing people with an emotional outlet for any problems they are going through.

According to one counselor, "Personally, I feel that you don't want to wake up a roommate, [talking to an Ear] is someone on your level," who will not make any judgements.

A counselor from the Counseling Center _ where the volunteers receive their training with the help of advisor Linda Escoll _ is also on call in case an "Ear" is called with a situation which is too much for them to handle alone.

Unlike SSARA, Ears for Peers counselors do not receive professional training that would allow them to deal with certain circumstances.

SSARA is a confidential service designed to coordinate on and off-campus resources for students who have been victimized.

The US Justice Department released statistics last year revealing that approximately three percent of women enrolled in colleges are raped every year. For every 1,000 women on campus approximately 35 have been involved in incidents of rape, the report said. Forcible sex offenses reported to TUPD on the Tufts campus in 2001 increased to four from three the year before.

In the past few years, 47 colleges and universities received grants from the Department of Justice Violence Against Women's office that enabled them to put into place programs that allow different resources to coordinate their activities in order to provide services to victims.

SSARA not only provides outreach to victims, but educates students by seeking to raise awareness on campus about sexual assault. For instance, this year freshman students learned about SSARA during Freshman Orientation's "Why No, Means No" and the counselors have spoken to residence halls in efforts to reach the student body at large.

Administrators from Health Services, the Counseling Center, and the Women's Center serve as supervisors and backups for eight student counselors who rotate on call.

SSARA provides victims with many resources, including legal advocates and off-campus health services.

Other colleges and universities in the have developed different kinds of programs that deal with sexual violence as well. UMass Amherst has established an on campus rape crisis center that is looking to reduce violence against women.

Ears for Peers which has been on campus since 1988, has provided a student run hotline that allows students to express any type of problem ranging from boyfriend/girlfriend conflicts to eating disorders. Ears for Peers, like SSARA, is part of a wider network of services on campus, mainly the Counseling Center, Health Services, Team Q _ part of the LGTB center, and the Women's Center as well.

SSARA is a prime example of a growing awareness of the need to provide rapid and effective support to both women and men who have been sexually abused or assaulted, Barrett said.

"It shows that we as a community are taking issues of sexual assault seriously and are going to provide quality care for people," she said. "It shows that professional services are there for support."