Weekly Series Helps Students Cope and Connect
Counseling and Psychological Services, in partnership with other campus departments, has created a program designed to provide students with a safe and supportive space amid the pandemic.
With the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic redefining normal, San Diego State University’s Counseling and Psychological Services (CPS) is working to ensure all students feel safe, understood and supported.
The pandemic has forced people to adapt to a variety of changes and challenges. According to Jennifer Rikard, director of CPS, this can spark a range of emotional experiences and in isolation, it can be hard to know if what you are feeling is “normal.”
To help students work through it all, CPS, in collaboration with Well-being and Health Promotion, Student Life and Leadership, and the Office of the Student Ombudsman, has launched a program titled “Coping with Quarantine.”
“We want to support our students in the ways that they need it,” said Rikard. “That includes approaching discussions from different angles so that there is something for everyone.”
The program features one 60-minute discussion each week. The discussions are facilitated by counselors, administrators, and students and focus on specific themes including managing academic stress, communicating, preparing for finals and task management.
“Coping with Quarantine” is meant to provide a space where students can talk, alleviate stress and discuss their feelings and tips for coping as it relates to the impacts of the pandemic.
Grace McCoy, a communications senior, recently attended one of the program’s sessions. She said she found the experience valuable and learned a lot about her own experience and emotions as well as those of others.
“Two psychologists, Diana Bull and Devon Berkheiser, talked us through all the different emotions we may have been experiencing during quarantine,” said McCoy. “We discussed different ways to cope with these feelings, and I was able to have my own questions answered. I really enjoyed hearing how other students have been feeling and learning new and healthy ways to get through this."
According to Rikard, CPS has seen great campus engagement for this program as well as other services as the community adjusts to working virtually.
“A lot of faculty reaching out and wanting to consult about the best ways to help their students,” said Rikard. “That’s not new, we do a lot of consultations with faculty, staff, and parents, but we are seeing our faculty and staff’s generosity in wanting to go the extra mile for our students right now.”
To learn more about the Coping with Quarantine program and others available please visit, the Counseling and Psychological Services homepage.
