Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

Don’t panic – you’re not in trouble.  If you received an email or phone call asking you to meet with someone from the team, it likely means that someone who cares about you has expressed concern.

Generally, students can expect to have an informal conversation with a member of the team to talk about what, if anything, is causing them stress and resources on campus that can help. During this conversation, the team member’s primary goal is to ensure your well-being, offer support, and connect you to resources. For many students, this will look like a referral to an on-campus resource (such as counseling, health services, the Academic Resource Hub and more!) and/or regular check-ins with a team member.

We seek to assist students while they remain on campus, but in rare cases may discuss whether a rigorous living-learning environment is the best, safest place for someone who is harming themselves or others, or is disrupting the community.

You should refer someone when you have seen signs of distress. These signs can be physical, emotional and/or interpersonal. Some common examples are changes in daily habits or performance in school or activities,  acting different than usual, an inability to focus, becoming withdrawn, or explicitly mentioning hopelessness or struggling. Trust your instincts – if you feel like something is wrong, it probably is. For more information about signs of distress and how to make a referral to Counseling and/or the SSIT, click here.

After a form is submitted, you will see a page confirmation that the report has been successfully entered and, if you entered an email address, you will also receive a confirmation email.  A team member may contact you to ask follow up questions. Out of respect for students’ privacy, the team will generally not share detailed updates. If you submitted a report and have questions, please contact Mindy Watson, Case Manager and Care Coordinator, at watsonme@lafayette.edu.

After a report is submitted, it gets distributed to team members to ensure it will be read promptly.  Please note that the form is not monitored 24/7, so in an emergency you should always call Public Safety.  Team members will consider the information provided to them to determine the best course of action. We often meet with the student of concern to hear his or her perspective. In all cases, members of the team remain conscientious of and committed to respecting all students’ privacy while  providing the type of assistance most helpful to and/or appropriate for the student of concern.

After the Student Support and Intervention Team receives a report, members consider which of the following options may best address the current situation:

• A meeting with the student of concern to gather information, hear their perspective, and brainstorm potential outcomes and solutions.
• Outreach to other people, including the person who submitted the report, to gather more information as necessary.
• Referral to a campus resource (counseling, health services, gender and sexuality programs, the Academic Resource Hub, and many more!).
• Regular check-ins with a member of the team.  If a student finds it helpful to speak with someone on the team, we will continue to talk with that student and ask how they are doing, what resources they need, etc.
• We seek to assist students while they remain on campus, but in rare circumstances, someone may be separated from campus (voluntarily or involuntarily) so they can have the time and space to focus on getting well before returning to the rigors of full-time study.

Considerations when making a decision about next steps include:

• The severity of the reported issue(s)
• The nature of the concern
• Whether the committee has received multiple reports about the same student & any prior interventions
• The student’s right to privacy
• Student and community safety

In all areas of the process, members of the committee remain conscientious of and committed to respecting students’ privacy.

When submitting a report, each reporter has the option to remain anonymous. However, choosing to remain anonymous may make it difficult for the team to successfully intervene.  When we do not know the identity of the reporter, we may not be able to ask specific questions or follow up as thoroughly as we would like.  If requested, we will make every effort to respect a preference for anonymity when communicating with the student of concern.  To learn about confidential resources, please click here.

The Student Support and Intervention  Team respects students’ privacy. Information contained in the reports are shared only on a need-to-know basis with community members who can best assist the student of concern. Generally, reports are not shared in their entirety. Records are maintained in a secure software system that only members of the team can access.

Lafayette College respects the privacy and autonomy of its students. In most cases, parents will not be contacted. However, if the team determines a student is an imminent danger to themselves or others, or otherwise has significant health or safety concerns, we may contact parents or guardians.

Yes. If you learn additional information that you feel may be helpful for the team to know, please submit another report.

Yes. If you’d like to report a concern for a non-life-threatening situation, you may contact the Case Manager and Care Coordinator, the Assistant Dean of Students, the Counseling or Health Centers, the chaplain, or any member of the Campus Life staff to seek assistance or let the college know that a student is in need of help. (Members of the community can also complete a One Pard form to notify the team of a concern or student in need of assistance.)

In the case of an emergency or if someone’s health or safety is at risk, contact Public Safety directly at (610) 330-4444.