Vandal Health Coalition seeks student volunteers
After a yearlong break, the Vandal Health Coalition is returning in full force to strive for complete campus health and wellness, with a strong focus on diversity.
In an effort to provide students with information about Vandal Health and various cooperating groups and programs, the coalition plans to recruit students to help plan events, provide feedback on initiatives and find out what additional services or events the student body thinks should be offered through Vandal Health and the Department of Student Involvement.
“We’re bringing it back this year, and with the same dream of getting students and staff in the room and just trying to better the health and wellness on campus,” said Nick Wren, ASUI director of health and wellness.
The coalition was formed two years ago by a partnership between Vandal Health Education and former ASUI Director of Health and Wellness Liz Brandon. The coalition involves health-oriented offices, such as the University of Idaho Counseling and Testing Center, which has resources for mental health.
Due to other Vandal Health events, Wren said the Vandal Health Coalition was inactive for the 2013-2014 school year, but is now back on track.
Wren said the coalition plans to recruit student volunteers to work and communicate with UI staff and faculty. After holding its first meeting Wednesday, the coalition opened up the application process for student volunteers.
Wren said the majority of first round applicants were pre-med, biology and nutrition students. While he thinks the turnout was positive, Wren said he would like to see more students applying with different interests and educational backgrounds.
“We realized that if we have all the same students with all the same backgrounds coming from all the same fields, that we’re going to inevitably miss something,” Wren said.
Any UI student can be a volunteer for the Vandal Health Coalition, he said. Student volunteers can determine how many hours they put in, whether it’s attending the monthly Vandal Health Coalition meeting or working extensively to plan or help run health events. Wren said a variety of applicants would contribute to the effort of establishing a new robust health resource on campus.
“What we’re trying to do right now is reach out to some different types of students that maybe wouldn’t think to join this right off the bat, but might be interested in it, just because everyone has a stake in their own health,” Wren said. “We realize that we’re missing part of the conversation if we don’t have diversity.”
The Vandal Health Coalition is reaching out to different cohorts of people to spread the word to students about the volunteer opportunity — whether it is through communication with athletes, the Office of Multicultural Affairs, the LGTBQA Office or the Student Recreation Center. Wren said the coalition is using existing channels of communication among UI groups, organizations and departments and is eager to gauge the interest of students.
He said volunteers would have opportunities to help in the near future, as events are already in the works.
“What we’re planning to do is have all the different people involved in this basically lay out a calendar, say when their events are and how students can help with that,” Wren said. “In terms of this semester, I think it’s going to be a lot more planning.”
The next two events the Vandal Health Coalition is supporting are the Field of Memories event to promote suicide prevention on Nov. 15, as well as tabling events throughout National Collegiate Alcohol Awareness Week, which began Oct. 20.
“It’s an interesting time with the coalition, just because we took a break last year,” Wren said. “We’re trying to figure out what this is going to look like and what it’s going to be.”
Cara Pantone can be reached at [email protected]