By From The Chronicle

Last fall this University saw how random and unexpectedly suicide can hit college campuses when freshman Gregory Gatto killed himself.

Although infrequent at this University, suicide is the second leading cause of death for college students in America. This fact should give University administrators impetus to raise campus-wide awareness about suicide and aggressively seek ways to prevent it.

The problem is that this University is only prepared to counsel students who seek out help. But health experts have discovered that those most prone to self-injury and suicide are the ones that do not ask for help. Therefore, stopping suicide before it happens means seeking out those who are potentially at risk.

By requiring professors and residential assistants to be on the lookout for noticeable depression or exceedingly withdrawn behavior, the chances an at risk student falls through the cracks is greatly reduced. In addition, students ought to feel comfortable reporting friends who they see as potentially dangerous to themselves.

Once a student is deemed “at risk” the University should require them to attend counseling.

Some universities force a leave of absence for such students, which is counterproductive to helping them recover. This University should create a system that pays exhaustive attention to those who are apt to commit self-injury or suicide by helping them with counseling while also allowing them to maintain their involvement in their college career.

To gauge how serious the problem could be on their campuses, Emory University and the University of North Carolina asked students to submit anonymous questionnaires concerning their mental health. This is an effective way to measure how serious the problem really is – a step this University needs to take.

A student who requests counseling here can receive up to four free sessions with a counselor. If students are required to pay for additional counseling, they will likely need to make their parents aware, which could deter them from getting help in the first place.

Currently there is little in place at this school. These preventative measures do not eliminate the chance of suicide, but rather greatly reduce the chances by creating a community able to recognize obvious signs of mental illness and act quickly.