Monthly Archives: April 2017

Denim Day @ Columbia – April 26th

Action Item, Columbia Events, Community Citizenship, Counseling/Psychological Services, Healthcare Issues

About Denim Day

DENIM DAY is an international campaign designed to raise awareness about the prevalence of sexual violence and to demonstrate support for sexual assault survivors.

The origins date back to Rome 1992, when an 18-year-old girl raped by her driving instructor. The instructor was initially found guilty, but later had his case overturned. In a statement released by the Supreme Court, the Head Judge argued, “Because the victim wore very, very tight jeans, she had to help him remove them…and by removing the jeans…it was no longer rape but consensual sex.” Enraged by the verdict, the women in the Italian Parliament launched into action immediately and protested the decision by wearing jeans on the steps of the Italian Parliament building. This call to action motivated and emboldened the California Senate and Assembly to do the same—and a movement was born.

On April 26, 2017, we celebrate Denim Day as a way to honor survivors. We are asking everyone in the Columbia community to participate in this educational campaign by making a social statement – wearing jeans (or something denim) as a visible demonstration of support for sexual assault survivors.

Pledge Your Support

By signing, I pledge to participate in Denim Day and take a stand against sexual violence and stand in solidarity with sexual assault survivors.

www.health.columbia.edu/pledge

Denim Day

Denim Day

Stressbusters in Butler – May 2nd

Columbia Events, Fun Stuff, Healthcare Issues
CU Move
Dear Friends of Alice!,

With the semester winding down, it also means Stressbusters in Butler is fast approaching!

Stressbusters is the student organization that provides free neck and back rubs to the Columbia community, as a way to cope with stress. Every reading week we host this event so students can take a break from studying to practice positive stress management skills. This semester’s event will take place on Tuesday, May 2nd from 6pm to 10pm in Butler 203. Students will have the opportunity to get a free neck and back rub and learn about various resources to which they have access.

If you are willing, please pass along the information about the event so students can plan on taking a study break during finals week. Please feel free to share the Facebook event and let us know if you would like any printed flyers.

What: Stressbusters in Butler
Where: Butler Library, Room 203
When: May 2nd, 6-10pm

If you have any questions about the event please reach out to Stressbusters at stressbusters@columbia.edu.

In health,
Alice! Health Promotion
300 John Jay Hall
alice@columbia.edu

INVITE: Filling the Void | NYC Launch

Invitation, Networking, New York City, Social Media
Join Repeater Books and author Marcus Gilroy-Ware for the Launch of Filling the Void: Emotion, Capitalism & Social Media.

April 18, 7pm
Spoonbill Books, 99 Montrose Avenue
Reading + Conversation

repeaterbooks.com/books/filling-the-void/

Filling The Void is a book about how the cultures and psychology of social media use fit within a broader landscape of life under capitalism. Marcus Gilroy-Ware argues that social media use is often a psychological response to the need for pleasure and comfort that results from the stresses of life under postmodern capitalism, rather than being a driver of new behaviors as new technologies are often said to be.

Filling the Void interrogates the role of social media networks, designed for private commercial gain, as part of a de-facto public sphere. Both the decreasing subjective importance of factual media and the ways in which the content of the timeline are quietly manipulated–often using labor in the developing world and secret algorithms–have serious implications for the capacity of social media users to query or challenge the seeming reality offered by the established hegemonic order.

Marcus Gilroy-Ware has been immersing himself in digital media since the age of five. Having lived in the United States, Brazil, and Britain, he now writes, teaches, researches, creates, and codes at the intersection of culture and communication.

https://www.facebook.com/events/618186935053409/

Office of University Life: Wellness Days @ Columbia

Columbia Events, Community Citizenship, Healthcare Issues

As the last month of classes gets underway, we are delighted to introduce Wellness Days @Columbia, a joint effort of students, faculty and staff that is part of an ongoing focus on mental health, wellness and community citizenship at Columbia.

You are cordially invited to join the events listed below, including opportunities for learning and support, as well as some fun and relaxation on the Morningside and Medical Center campuses (full details at universitylife.columbia.edu/wellnessdays).

Workshops, Training and Conversation – Starting Monday, April 10

  • Anxiety:  Friend or Foe? – Come hear one of the nation’s leading anxiety experts, Dr. Anne Marie Albano, faculty member and the director of Columbia’s Clinic for Anxiety and Related Disorders, on the Morningside Campus, lunch included with registration. Monday at noon in Buell Hall (Morningside). Details and registration here.
  • Mental Health Rounds – Get bystander intervention training with CUMC Addiction Information and Management Strategies (AIMS) and Sexual Violence Response, in the new Vagelos Education Center (CUMC), also with lunch. Monday, 11:30 am to 1 pm. No registration required.
  • Friend2Friend workshops – Learn how to recognize and respond to peers in distress using understanding, self-care and more from Alice! Health Promotion. Multiple times Monday through Wednesday; register here.

AWAKENING OUR DEMOCRACY: The Politics of Mental Health Care – Wednesday, April 12 at Noon at CUMC – This lively lunchtime conversation about mental health needs and access to care will include Nikki Webber Allen, founder of “i Live For…” a nonprofit working to end the stigma of depression and mental disorders in teens and young adults of color; Dr. Kim Hopper, professor at Mailman School of Public Health with expertise in dimensions of recovery and support in mental illness; Dr. Billy E. Jones, former senior advisor on mental health and healthcare reform at the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs and Commissioner of the New York City Department of Mental Health; and Dr. Kathleen Pike, CUMC faculty member, clinical psychologist and Executive Director of the Global Mental Health Program. Lunch provided, register here.

STUDY BREAK @ CU – Thursday, April 13, Noon to 5 pm – Hit pause during this five-hour “study break” on the South Lawn in front of Butler Library, kicking off with yoga at noon and continuing with games, neck and back rubs from Stressbusters and other activities with student organizations, resources (and swag!) all afternoon.  At CUMC, the Center for Student Wellness offers opportunities for relaxation and fun. Check the schedule for STUDY BREAK details. 

Try an online tutorial on how to support friends in distress – All Columbia students, faculty and staff are invited to try a 30-minute interactive training for students (starting Monday) that offers practice with raising concerns and includes reminders about resources on campus. Students who complete an evaluation of this pilot tutorial by May 1 will have a chance to win their choice of Bose headphones or one of many $50 Amazon gift cards. Look for details on the Wellness Days website.

We know that community wellness does not happen in a matter of days. It requires, instead, a sustained and mutually upheld ethic of care. “Self-care” is easy to say, but harder for many of us to do, and we can start there, even as we continue to take steps together on many other fronts. As always, we welcome your ideas and suggestions at universitylife@columbia.edu.

Wellness Days @Columbia is brought to you by the Office of University Life and many co-sponsoring student organizations, and by Columbia Health, Columbia University Medical Center Student Health Service, Columbia Athletics, Columbia Libraries and the Office of the University Chaplain. Read more about the genesis of Wellness Days here.

Here’s to our individual and collective wellness.

Suzanne Goldberg
Executive Vice President for University Life
Herbert and Doris Wechsler Clinical Professor of Law, Columbia Law School

Office of University Life
Online | App | Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | YouTube
universitylife@columbia.edu

CU there! Building your Columbia community…on the road

Action Item, Alumni, Fun Stuff, Networking

CU there! is a 2017 initiative of the Senate Alumni Relations Committee, in partnership with Senate Student Affairs Committee and the Columbia Alumni Association, to benefit both students and alumni.

The premise is simple – to help our students and alumni connect across the Columbia community to engage and network during the summer break.  Rather than a traditional mentorship program or career-related networking, CU there! helps students connect informally with alumni – via the regional club network and other alumni groups that have location-specific events. Whether a student is returning to their hometown or moving to a new city, whether participating in a formal internship, working at a summer job, or volunteering, CU there! connects students with fellow students and alumni during the summer.  The regional clubs will determine the activities they offer – hosting a smaller reception or dinner or having students join a previously scheduled activity for the greater alumni community.

Sign up for CU there! and meet up with the alumni this summer at scheduled events, informal gatherings, or one-on-one. Whether it is for career opportunities, collaborating on a project, or getting oriented in a new city, there is a ready-made community of over 330,000 Columbia alumni in more than 100 clubs and interest groups living in 184 countries who are waiting to connect with you wherever you go.

Here is the link to sign up: ttp://goo.gl/Y5bHiJ