Project Background
The McDonald Center for Student Well-Being strategically assesses the environment and creates structures for wellness enhancement and risk reduction. Using evidence-based practices and collaborating with a range of campus partners, “McWell” works collectively to provide initiatives, services, and resources that support the eight dimensions of well-being.
Also includes:
University Health Services (UHS)
University Counseling Center (UCC)
Student Support and Care
Definition of Opportunity
Given the stresses on students and the impacts of the pandemic, it is evident that students could benefit from wellness resources more than ever. The University offers a variety of resources of great value to students, but they are spread across different schools, offices, and initiatives. This project focuses on mapping resources (programs, initiatives, classes, support groups, etc) on campus that help promote wellness and student flourishing. Such mapping exercises are often helpful to both realize there are more resources than meets the eye and allow people more access to them, as well as encourage different actors working towards the same goals to talk with one another.
What are the student health and well-being resources on campus?
Where are the resources located?
How do students know about the resource?
How do they connect and access the resource?
What is student utilization of the resource?
What is student perception of the utilization of the resource?
How does the department measure effectiveness of the resource?
Who/which departments are the established partners for this resource?
Definition of Success
A successful project would not only show what opportunities and resources for wellness exist at Notre Dame but would present them to students in a user-friendly way that is both attractive and easy to access. Further, such mapping may show how different efforts might more effectively work together, or show where gaps may exist in wellness resources.
One possibility would be to create a student-facing website that is interactive and user-friendly.