The American College Health Foundation supports the mission of student health services and the institutions they serve by funding innovative, creative health and wellness programs and initiatives. Some of these projects and activities would not otherwise be funded through traditional revenue sources, and that’s where ACHF steps in. 

ACHF now provides seven awards and one writing prize on an annual basis. Four of these will be offered for the first time in 2014. Together, the awards provide funding for projects focusing on healthy education, behavioral and mental health issues, wellness solutions, and innovative practices in college health (including culturally competent practices and initiatives to help implement the goals of Healthy Campus 2020).  

Could any of these awards help support a program at your institution?

NEW! Aetna Student Health Award – $5,000 award to support the creation of novel wellness solutions and programs that address issues specifically related to the overall well-being of college students 

Gallagher Koster Innovative Practices in College Health Awards – two awards of $2,500 each to support the development of innovative practices that improve access to quality health care for students

NEW! Healthy Campus 2020 Award – $2,500 award to support campus initiatives to implement the goals of Healthy Campus 2020 

NEW! Stephan D. Weiss Student Mental Health Award – $2,500 award to promote and improve the quality of mental health support for college students (available to undergrad or graduate student applicants enrolled at ACHA member institutions)

NEW! Student Health 101 Award – $2,500 award to support new efforts to improve and promote health education programs on college campuses

UnitedHealthcare StudentResources Initiatives in College Mental and Behavioral Health Award – $5,000 award to support the development of creative solutions and programs to address issues specifically related to mental and behavioral health issues affecting college students

Stephan D. Weiss, PhD Mental Health Fund for Higher Education Writing Prize – $1,500 prize for the lead author of a pivotal publication in college mental health

It’s important to note that until recently, ACHF funding opportunities were referred to as grants. It was brought to our attention that some institutions require applicants who are applying for grant funding to complete lengthy internal documentation.

This process takes up a considerable amount of time, and time is something busy college health professionals don’t have much of. To make the application process less cumbersome, the term has now been changed to “awards,” but the program is otherwise unchanged – except for the addition of four new awards, of course! We hope that by making this change, many more deserving applicants will be able to apply for ACHF funding.

These awards are available exclusively to ACHA members or college health professionals at a member institution. The Weiss Student Mental Health Award is available only to student applicants. 

For more information on specific awards, visit “How to Apply for Funding, Awards, and the Weiss Writing Prize.” Be sure to submit your applications by January 31, 2014!

By: Lorri Castro-Zenoni
ACHA Wellness Needs of Military Students Coalition Chair  

The Government shutdown has different effects on our student populations. But how does it impact our military and veteran students on our college campuses? 

Here is a link to a Veterans Field Guide to the Government Shutdown created by the Veterans Association (VA). It was last updated on October 7, 2013. As it may change daily, please continue to review the document.

Almost all branches of the military have suspended their tuition assistance (TA) programs. Students can still use TA if already approved for this semester, but most new applications will not be approved until funds are appropriated. The VA is continuing to process and issue payments for education claims, though payments to students may be slow. The VA should continue to pay until they are out of funds, and the length of the shutdown will determine how long the money will last.

Please visit these individual sites for specific information related to each branch.

Air Force (log in by Air Force Personnel required)
Army
Coast Guard
Marines
Navy
Military Spouses

For those campuses that have a VetSuccess program, your representative has most likely been furloughed (effective October 8) and will remain furloughed until funds have been appropriated. Those students utilizing the GI Bill will find the hotline non-operational and the website not up to date. Vocational Rehabilitation counselors have also been furloughed, so many of our students with disability ratings are left with questions that cannot be answered.

As it is uncertain how long this government shutdown will persist, it is important that our campuses and counseling and student health clinics prepare to support our military and veteran students. Many of them rely on their GI Bill for more than tuition; it also pays for housing and food allowances. Inform your staff and learn as much as you can. Many of the Veteran Center employees that these students rely on for answers may not be available. It is up to all of us to help our military and veteran students in this time of need.

One of the easiest ways to get in touch with a large group of people these days is through webinars. These large virtual meetings are especially helpful for college health professionals with colleagues all over the country, and the world. Webinars allow a large group of individuals to come together to share ideas and ask thoughtful questions in a free and interactive setting. 

ACHA is pleased to offer webinar services through GoToWebinar.com, a simple and convenient means to host meetings for up to 100 people. Some ACHA webinars will come from sections, committees/coalitions, or affiliates, while others will be speakers solicited by ACHA. Continuing education credits may also be available for webinars that qualify.  

Recent webinars include “The Art and Science of Coalition Building,” “Using Environmental Management Strategies within a Coalition,” and “Focus Groups in Health Education Practice: An Introduction.”

If you have an idea for a webinar, contact your section, committee/coalition, or affiliate leadership for more information.

Remember a few years ago, when you attended that session at the Annual Meeting? And now something has come up on your campus and you could really use what you learned at that session – if only you could figure out where you stashed that handout. 

Or maybe you need some information on a unique-to-college-health issue; there’s a good chance that one of the hundreds of sessions offered at the ACHA conference over the last several years addressed that topic. But is there any way to view those presentations, even the ones from five years ago, without having to track down the speaker?

Yes, there is! 

After each meeting we post copies of presentation slideshows and handouts so that our members and attendees can check out sessions they missed, review sessions they attended, share information from an interesting session with other colleagues, or view a slideshow along with the purchased audio recording to get a fuller learning experience. In years past, the handouts stayed on the website for about eight months or so and then we took them down.  

We realized, though, that we were sitting on a gold mine of resources. Every year, approximately 130 meeting sessions on just about every conceivable college health topic are presented, and these presentation slide shows contain an enormous amount of information. Sometimes it’s information that’s not readily available elsewhere. And so we present to you the Archive of ACHA Annual Meeting Final Programs and Presentation Handouts! 

We have re-posted session handouts and slideshows as far back as 2009. We’ve also posted the conference programs dating back to 2005, just in case anyone needs to access them.

We rely on the speakers to provide us with copies of their presentations so that we can post them online – not all speakers give us anything, but we still have an ample selection. Please look through the archive next time you need more information on anything from concussions to benchmarking to emergency response and so much more.  Please note that the handouts and slide shows were accurate at the time of the presentation but may not contain up-to-date information, so it’s advisable to check current resources.

And if you attend a great session at the meeting, please encourage the speaker to send us a copy of their presentation so we can post it.  

Back in January, ACHA decided to jump into the blogosphere with its
Annual Meeting Blog. We thought it would be a great way to share meeting highlights and provide travel tips from the local members who know and love the city of Boston. Using the blog, we expanded on our usual channels of communications and invited our members to add their own contributions. 

We thought the blog worked pretty well! So well, in fact, that we’ve decided to change the blog’s focus from the meeting to all things ACHA and college health. 

We’ll be discussing ACHA’s programs and resources and how to get the most out of them, hot topics in college health, committee projects and affiliate meetings, and everything in between. And because we really believe in a “for members-by members” philosophy, much of what we will be sharing will come directly from our members. You’ll hear from board members, committee, coalition, and task force members, and affiliate leaders. You’ll also read posts by members who want to share their experiences with Healthy Campus 2020, ACHA-NCHA, the annual meeting, and other ACHA programs. 

This blog offers us a new, informal way to reach our members and for them to reach us. A good blog helps it readers, educating and inspiring them, and in turn, its readers can provide insight that just can’t be gleaned from traditional, static mediums like a printed newsletter or a website.

So, now that we’ve told you about our goals and what we hope to achieve, what do you want to read about? If you are interested in contributing to the blog, please contact Kristen Klimo at [email protected].