This guide is intended for instructors to help plan course design choices that support student wellness, to share support services with students, and to know where to turn when a student is in distress.
Why This Matters: Your Role
Instructors play an important role in fostering a campus culture of care that promotes student well-being. You do not need to be a mental health professional to make a difference. By showing that mental health matters, expressing care, and helping students connect with resources, you can have a meaningful impact.
A simple but powerful step is to normalize help-seeking: talk about campus supports openly and often, so students see using them as an ordinary part of being a successful student.
UWM’s Strategies to Support Student Mental Health and Emotional Well-Being site offers activities and resources for helping students in distress, communicating about mental health resources, and structuring your plans and activities with mental health in mind.
Structure Your Course with Mental Health in Mind
Instructors can support students’ emotional and mental health by proactively shaping the environment in which students learn. Consider the following practices:
- Set deadlines that support healthy sleep. If you use 11:59 p.m. default deadlines, consider moving them earlier so students can prioritize sleep. Healthier sleep supports academic performance and emotional well-being.
- Help students get to know each other. Plan 2–3 short activities for your course or student group meetings. Opportunities to engage with peers help students build strong social connections, which increase the resilience needed to cope with stress.
- Encourage and model self-care. Incorporate meditation, breathing, movement, or other mindfulness activities into class, coursework, or meetings, especially during high-stress points in the semester. See the UWM Mindfulness website for ideas.
- Schedule a wellness program. Choose from SHAW’s menu of wellness programs, or use a Don’t Cancel Class program designed to fit a 50-minute class period.
- Give a heads-up on sensitive topics. Let students know in advance about sensitive readings, topics, trainings, or discussions, and offer ways for them to raise concerns with you ahead of time.
Mid-semester check: simple supports to offer now
- Post or re-share the campus support links in a Canvas module or point students to the student support resource list.
- Offer additional office hours or other support options around exams and major deadlines.
- Review the resource on gathering midterm student feedback.
Campus Resources to Share with Students
Below are key UWM supports to consider mentioning in class.
- SHAW Counseling: counseling that supports the holistic wellness of every student. For needs beyond SHAW’s scope of care, staff help students find appropriate resources.
- Call 414-229-7429, option 2 for in-person or virtual appointments. New, first-time clients can schedule online.
- Mantra Health: an additional teletherapy resource for students.
- SHAW Wellness Programs: programs on emotional health and stress management, sleep, nutrition, healthy relationships, sexual health, body acceptance, overall wellness, and victim advocacy.
- Instructors and staff can request a program for a class, residence hall, team, or student group.
- The Mindful Space: a tranquil place for students to take a break, relax, and build mindful self-awareness, with light therapy, VR goggles (beach or mountain hike scenes), a massage chair, meditation pillows, and more.
- YOU@UWM: online well-being portal for students.
- Student Success Center: central hub for student support services.
- Support U: student support resources through the Student Success Center.
Responding to Students in Distress
The Red Folder: Your Online Guide to Students in Distress helps UWM faculty, staff, and community members recognize, respond effectively to, and refer distressed students. Bookmark it so you can find it quickly when you need it.
Recognize, Respond, Refer Training
The UW System’s Recognize, Respond, Refer: Suicide Prevention Training for Faculty and Staff is an asynchronous online course that builds awareness, knowledge, and skills around mental health and suicide prevention. It takes about 45 minutes to complete.
To enroll: search “Recognize, Respond, Refer” in Workday Learning.
Designing for Neurodiversity
Neurodivergent students, including those diagnosed with ADHD, autism, dyslexia, or other cognitive variations, are not an exception in the classroom; they are increasingly the norm.
One of the most powerful tools faculty have is structure. Clear routines reduce cognitive load and anxiety. When students know what to expect, how to prepare, how assignments are weighted, and when feedback will arrive, they can focus on learning rather than decoding the hidden curriculum.
Read more tips in CASL’s Designing for Neurodiversity: Faculty Guide.