TORONTO, August 1, 2017 - Student organizations across the country today released a joint publication on student mental health, titled, Shared Perspectives.
The publication includes contributions from the Council of Alberta University Students (CAUS), the Ontario Undergraduate Student Alliance (OUSA), the New Brunswick Student Alliance (NBSA), and Students Nova Scotia (SNS), and was produced with the support of the Canadian Alliance of Student Associations (CASA).
“Post-secondary education is a provincial responsibility, but youth mental health is increasingly a federal concern. We are proud to have contributed to Shared Perspectives because it brings student mental wellness into this national conversation,” said OUSA President and University of Waterloo Federation of Students Vice-President Education, Andrew Clubine.
The publication sheds light on the limited successes and continued challenges facing students with regard to increased access to mental health-related services on campus by featuring case studies from each of the participating provinces.
“We hope that Shared Perspectives will encourage stakeholders nationwide to explore solutions that cross provincial borders, ” said Clubine.
OUSA has prioritized investments in mental health for several years and welcomed the government’s commitment to an additional $6 million for on-campus supports in May. Students in Ontario continue to believe that there is more to be done, and recommend the government takes a system wide view to ensure campus wellness centres are well integrated with off-campus health care providers.
Shared Perspectives is the first time that all five organizations have formally collaborated, representing almost 300,000 postsecondary student voices through this publication.
You can read the joint publication here. To read our student health and wellness policy, click here.