Submission: UCLA provides safe, confidential options for support, care

This school year has begun with increased attention in the Daily Bruin and elsewhere on mental health issues facing students.

The safety and well-being of our students is at the very core of our mission at UCLA, and we welcome the opportunity to highlight the care and support options available to any student who may be struggling with a mental health concern.

First and of critical importance, no student who may be in need of mental health assistance should be discouraged from making these needs known in whatever setting is most comfortable for him or her. Providing students with whatever support and assistance necessary to help them realize their educational aspirations is the primary goal of all staff and faculty. To this end, our campus has a wide variety of confidential options through which students can become connected with resources that will assist them in finding appropriate options for support and care.

That said, we want to make it clear that UCLA does not have any policy that allows involuntary withdrawal to be enforced on a student. While UC system-wide policies include a provision for implementation of this type of action on a campus-by-campus basis, UCLA has chosen not to adopt such a policy because we do not feel it is fair or productive to forcibly remove students from their academic pursuits because of a mental illness.

Whenever we become aware of a situation in which students may be a threat to their own well-being or that of others, we begin with the recognition that each student’s background and needs are unique. We work to develop a specific case management strategy that will allow us to address the student’s needs with care and compassion and the goal of developing a plan for the student’s ultimate success. Both UCLA Counseling and Psychological Services and the Arthur Ashe Student Health and Wellness Center, which are the two main care providers for students facing this type of difficulty, are fully compliant with professional privacy requirements. No information regarding any student’s concerns or treatment is released to anyone who does not have a demonstrated “need to know” for safety and treatment purposes.

A recent column by Natalie Delgadillo in the Daily Bruin states that students in the residence halls who report concerns about their own emotional status or request assistance from resident assistants or other members of the Office of Residential Life staff may be excluded from on-campus housing as a result. This is a misunderstanding of the intent and the spirit of this policy, and it should absolutely not be seen as a deterrent to students who may wish to share concerns or request assistance. The policy is utilized primarily in instances where a student is seen as a demonstrable threat to the safety or well-being of other students in the residential community.

The staff in UCLA Student Affairs and our colleagues throughout campus are committed to doing everything within our power to support our students in the pursuit of their academic goals, including providing whatever level of support, counseling or other forms of assistance may be needed to keep students healthy and safe through the course of their Bruin experience. Please feel free to contact us with any further questions about this topic or other issues of concern.

Gong-Guy, Ph.D., is executive director of UCLA Counseling and Psychological Services. Seplow, Ed.D., is assistant vice chancellor for student development.