Keans Mental Health Fair

By Ja’Bria Lester | Published November 3, 2022

Life as we know it could take a big toll on our mental health and could affect anyone, especially college students. The older we get, the more responsibilities we have to take on whether it’s with school, family, bills, or even our personal lives.

Kean University ensures that students are being recognized and heard. Chantonette Lyles, associate director for Student Retention and Educational Innovation, is in charge of the Mental Health Fair on Oct. 12 for students whose mental health has been affected. 

This event is a part of Kean’s first-ever, junior’s week which is the week of Oct. 10 to Oct. 14. Its focus is on juniors, making sure that they’re connected to campus resources and also other students as well. 

“Mental health affects all of us in many different ways and it is very important that students make their mental health a priority, which is why we wanted to incorporate this mental health fair during juniors week,” Lyles said.

Not only is this a Kean University event that will have students participate, but the mental health fair will have several other collaborations on campus that will include tables outside, and also outside resources will be attending. 

Every year there is a Mental Health Awareness month event here at the university, this year the event was held on Oct. 12.  The conversation on mental health should be much bigger and have much more exposure. 

“I want to make mental health day a priority, referring students to the counseling center to make sure that students have a long way to go, that they know that there are campus resources here to assist,” Lyles said.

All students go through tough times, especially when it comes to mid-terms that are approaching quickly. The purpose of this mental health fair is to let students know that it is okay to take a deep breath and just relax for a moment. 

Peace is a very important factor that should be taken into consideration. When you’re at peace everything flows effortlessly. The mental health event on Oct. 12  touched on important factors that we need in our everyday lives. 

Students may not often feel as though they are heard enough, or sometimes cared about. Each day is a different day that we go through whether it starts off good and ends bad or starts bad and ends good, it’s just unpredictable. 

Kayla Hodges, a student here at Kean, has been attending for three years now. She has faced some hardships throughout her time here. 

“How I deal with my mental health is if I don’t have anyone to talk about it with, I would use music as an escape, shop, watching youtube videos, cleaning, and painting,” Hodges said.

As the school year develops and incoming students come in, it is very important for them to not feel as if college is an overwhelming place, they should feel comfortable in this environment. 

Being able to talk to one another and share your hobbies could help the next person. Some people just may need that listening ear or someone to be around when times are tough.

“It’s not easier said than done, the gray cloud does not always last forever. It may feel like that at the moment but always be open to resources and advice. Just keep pushing yourself to be a better you,” Hodges said.

At the mental health fair there were several tables placed outside of the Miron Student Center. Each table had information on how to access different resources on campus for dealing with mental health issues. 

There was also food, games, prizes, and lots of smiling faces. It was a great turnout, students made sure that they received the help they needed even if it was for a friend. 

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