The Jed Foundation

Imagine harnessing the influence of young celebrities, like Mary J. Blige and the Smashing Pumpkins’ Billy Corgan, to convince your students to seek help for their mental health struggles.

You can. Encourage students to visit ULifeline, a confidential Web site created by The Jed Foundation, a nonprofit organization dedicated to preventing suicide and reducing emotional distress among college students. Once at the site, students can access information and resources about suicide prevention and many other mental health issues. They can also complete a mental health evaluation. Or they can read college students’ stories about dealing with depression, anxiety, cutting, suicide, eating disorders, alcohol and drugs. And they can review fact and fiction sheets about the signs and symptoms of mental health issues.

ULifeline also connects students to halfofus.com, a partnership with mtvU. It includes videos of celebrities and other students sharing how they’ve coped with mental health issues.

“These get a lot of attention because they’re high-profile artists and students want to learn more about them and what they’re doing,” said Anita Schillhorn van Veen, manager of online and interactive programs for The Jed Foundation. “They talk about what they’re struggling with and how they got out of it,” she said. And they encourage students to seek help when they need it and to not be afraid that doing so will stigmatize them.

Students access it all anonymously, from any computer, day or night, for free.

Colleges can also join the ULifeline network for free. ULifeline lists members’ mental health services, programs, policies and contact information. Members also have access to customizable outreach materials. Whether or not a college joins, students still have access to the site’s general information.

“It’s yet another resource in helping students go online at midnight to find out what they want about themselves or help for a friend or a family member,” said Shannon Ellis, vice president for student services at the University of Nevada, Reno. Her institution is among the more than 1,300 members of ULifeline. Ellis serves on the advisory boards for both Student Affairs Today and The Jed Foundation.

“We’re dealing with life and death issues sometimes. Many people have to reduce counseling services because budget reductions are so devastating,” Ellis said. “This adds resources.”

And ULifeline saves time, Ellis said. “We need to educate ourselves about the signs, symptoms and how to help people. You’ll find reputable information, specific to our population,” she said. “It’s a quicker, accessible way to find information, as opposed to [attending] a workshop where you have to set aside time.”

ULifeline is developed and maintained by experts. “I have great confidence in the credibility of these people,” Ellis said. “They’re more sensitive to how students and practitioners can access and navigate this site than anyone else I’ve worked with. They realize if students can’t find the information, the consequences could be severe.” ULifeline tracks the site’s usage, but not names or e-mail addresses to ensure confidentiality. More than 36 of University of Nevada, Reno students accessed it between January and April, according to ULifeline data, Ellis said. Ellis’s campus counseling center publicizes ULifeline to students via text messages, broadcast e-mails, ads and orientation.

She asked a group of students if any of the self-evaluation questions caused discomfort. They said no. “They really liked the self-evaluation, and where they can get educated about signs and symptoms that are normal or should seek help for,” she said.