NORFOLK, Neb. – The holiday season is often thought of as a joyful, happy time of the year. Unfortunately, that’s not the case for everyone, especially college students. At Northeast Community College, counselors work hard throughout the year to connect with students to make sure they’re okay. Each month they hold an event at Union Coffee in the College’s Union 73 to connect with students. A holiday theme-event was held just prior to the end of the fall semester.
Gina Krysl, director of student care and outreach, said in addition to connecting with students, their monthly Coffee with the Counselors event is an opportunity to share about the services that are offered, provide an activity that is related to self-care and treat them to a drink from the coffee shop.
“It's also a great way for us to get students connected to others as we know that there are students who say they don't have friends yet. So, this is a good opportunity to get to know each other,” she said.
With the holidays around the corner, the counselors came up with a way to lift up the spirits of students with the help of Lloyd and Raven, two dogs who make frequent visits to the college. However, for the December event, the two were appropriately dressed, thanks to their owners, Warren Wiborg, Jr. and Jean Allen. Lloyd, Raven and even Warren were all dressed in holiday pajamas.
“They come out once a month or more, and their dogs just provide comfort essentially to our students. We have a lot of students who don't have their dogs here with them on campus. So, it helps comfort them and ease their mind a little bit,” Krysl said. “(The dogs) have also been able to come out when we've had extra events or while we've had grief counseling, they've also been present just to help our students. We see our students get down on the floor with the dogs and opening up to the volunteers about what's going on in their life and walk away with a smile.”
At this month’s Coffee with the Counselors, Krysl said students were also invited to create an ornament and were asked to write down a word of intention for next year or something that may be meaningful to them, or they could draw a picture.
Krysl was pleased with the larger number of students who attended the event. They typically attract approximately 50 students and were close to running out of drink coupons less than a half-hour after it started.
Regardless of the time of year, Krysl said it is important to make sure to connect with the students.
“It’s just another way for us to remind students to take care of their mental health. Not all holidays are fun for students, and they can be very stressful. It's just a reminder to them to take care of themselves.”
###
Cutline
Two Northeast Community College students visit with Jean Allen and her pajama-clad Great Dane, Raven, during Coffee with the Counselors event at the College recently. Gina Krysl, director of student care outreach, said in addition to connecting with students, their monthly Coffee with the Counselors event is an opportunity to share about the services that are offered, provide an activity that is related to self-care and treat them to a drink from the coffee shop.