Monmouth University

Connect to Wellness at Monmouth University: A Competent Community Initiative (CONNECTWELLMU) is a comprehensive program to address the mental health, health and substance use issues that lead to increased risk for suicide and suicide-related behavior among college students, including military-affiliated (still in service)/veteran, first generation, transfer and graduate students. CONNECTWELLMU widens our safety-net and competent community by expanding connections between campus service providers, between students and services, and between the community and campus to create a deeper level of support for students experiencing mental health and substance use issues, or at-risk for suicide.

• Goal 1. Improve the connection/infrastructure between students and appropriately trained behavioral health care providers who treat mental health and substance use disorders
• Objective 1.a. Increase the communication and collaboration between campus mental health (CPS), health and substance use providers
• Objective 1.b. Increase the communication and collaboration between campus and off-campus resources for general population and high-risk populations (i.e. military-affiliated/veteran students, students reintegrating from hospital; first-generation, and transfer students)
• Objective 1.c Improve access to timely mental health and substance use services on campus
• Goal 2. Improve college students’, faculty, and staffs’ ability to effectively respond to college students with mental health and substance use disorders
• Objective 2.a. Improve clinicians’ ability to effectively assess and manage suicide risk
• Objective 2.b Improve student and adult gatekeepers’ ability to identify mental health and substance use issues among peers and students
• Goal 3. Improve early identification of students at-risk for mental health and substance use issues
• Objective 3.a. Implement selective screening for mental health and suicide risk, using PHQ-9 in health, CPS and substance use services
• Objective 3.b. Increase identification of students with mental health challenges on campus
• Objective 3.c. Improve knowledge of sending high schools in suicide prevention
• Objective 3.d. Develop and disseminate resources for parents/families of general population of students as well as special populations (i.e. military-affiliated/veteran students, students reintegrating from hospital; first-generation, and transfer students)
• Goal 4. Increase awareness of available mental health and substance use services on- and off-campus
• Objective 4.a. Create a CONNECTWELLMU web-based portal for campus services and wellness
• Objective 4.b. Increase student awareness of services and promote help seeking
• Objective 4.c. Promote National Suicide Prevention Lifeline and crisis services
• Objective 4.d. Increase faculty (full-time and adjunct) awareness of mental health, substance and other services on campus