President's Task Force on Student Mental Health Report
Overview
Mental health concerns among post-secondary students in Canada have been increasing over the last decade. Between 2013 and 2022, Canadian students reported an increase in psychological distress, help-seeking for mental health concerns, diagnoses of mental health illnesses, and overall languishing mental health.
Given that U of G aims to be recognized as a leader in providing mental health services and supports, the President’s Task Force on Student Mental Health was created in January 2023 to engage the community and co-produce recommendations on how we can build on existing work, adapt initiatives for U of G, and propose actions to continue our efforts toward becoming a health-promoting university.
The final report was published on 2024/04/03 outlining recommendations that provide a holistic approach to ensure our students are supported and create a campus climate that promotes well-being and success.
Related Documents & Resources
Steering Committee
To enable progress on the 40 recommendations identified in the Report, the Student Mental Health Steering Committee has been developed with support from the Office of the President. As stewards for advancement, these individuals will work with many partners across campus to implement and deliver these actions to our students:
- Alison Burnett (Co-chair)
- Andrew Papadopoulos (Co-chair)
- Byron Sheldrick, Associate Vice-President Academic
- Joanne Emeneau, Associate University Secretary, Senate
- Melinda Scott, Vice Provost, Student Affairs
This steering committee is in the early stages, and we look forward to sharing progress updates with you as they become available.
Members of the U of G community are encouraged to reach out to mentalhealth.taskforce@uoguelph.ca if they have questions or want to learn more.
Progress
To follow the progress and implementation of the report’s 40 recommendations please select a pillar below. Last Updated: 2024/04/03
Background
The President’s Task Force on Student Mental Health engaged 2,601 members of the U of G community across our Guelph, Guelph-Humber, and Ridgetown campuses through focus groups, in-person tabling sessions, online surveys, interviews, and an open space conference. These inputs were used along with existing university data, published research evidence, and promising practices to compile mental health recommendations built around an accepted framework from the Canadian Association of Colleges and Universities.
Urgent Mental Health Care
If you are in crisis, feeling unsafe, or worried you might hurt yourself or others. Urgent Mental Health care is available.