Concurrent Sessions

While peer support is a promising approach to student mental health, many post-secondary institutions continue to face challenges due to low awareness and inconsistent access. This presentation will explore how the evolving structure of UofT’s Peer Support Service (PSS) addressed these challenges to become an integral part of the university’s mental health support landscape.

Since adopting a new service model in 2022, PSS has expanded significantly in reach, accessibility and impact. This session will unpack key factors to this growth including the role of student engagement and creativity in co-design and service delivery, and the service’s formal integration as a named step in the university’s stepped care model. Presenters will also demonstrate how strategic outreach – through social media and student-frequented spaces – has driven engagement and promoted wellbeing beyond one-to-one support.

Co-presented with Peer Supporters, the session will highlight stories of care and hope by incorporating student perspectives and evaluation findings.

Young caregivers play a vital yet often overlooked role in supporting loved ones while juggling their own education, social lives, and mental health. Despite spending an average of 14-27 hours a week providing care, the equivalent of a part-time job, these youth remain largely invisible in post-secondary settings. This session will shed light on the experiences of young caregivers, the unique challenges they face, and the critical need for recognition and support. Participants will explore how peer support can help young caregivers feel connected and supported and learn about free external programs available to assist them. Whether you’re a student, educator, or service provider, this session will equip you to better understand and uplift this hidden population.

This presentation showcases a collaborative and comprehensive intern counselling training program that has assisted in reinvigorating staff engagement and professional passion within the Wellness and Well-Being pillar at Western University. Designed to bridge academic training with practical experience, the program fosters meaningful mentorship between experienced staff and emerging Social Work and Registered Psychotherapy professionals. It includes a thoughtful onboarding program, weekly group and individual supervision and a partnership between Student Support Case Management and the Mental Health Team.

This session will explore the value of intergenerational home sharing as a strategy to boost student well-being. By connecting students with older adults in the campus community, we aim to address crucial social determinants of health, such as financial stability, housing security, and social support. Participants will learn about findings from applied research conducted during the 2024/2025 academic year in partnership with a home share match-making company and learn how these insights can help both students and older adults determine if home sharing is a suitable option for them. Although home sharing and intergenerational living are not new concepts, there is potential for post-secondary institutions to leverage these living arrangements to strategically improve support systems within campus communities.

The Circle of Life, a core Indigenous teaching, reflects interconnectedness, balance, and the idea that every being has a purpose. It teaches that equity is not just about sharing resources but honoring the unique gifts each individual brings. Through the elements—earth, water, air, and fire—Indigenous wisdom offers lessons on resilience, diversity, and inclusion.

Earth symbolizes growth and adaptability, reminding us of the strength found in diversity. Animals teach respect and purpose, each contributing to life’s balance. Water represents inclusion, flowing and embracing all beings. Air, the great equalizer, provides life to all, reinforcing the principle of equity.

Indigenous communities apply these teachings to self-care, fostering harmony between mind, body, and spirit. By embracing these principles, society can create welcoming spaces where everyone, including newcomers, feels valued. Strengthening one part of the circle uplifts the whole, ensuring a more inclusive and connected world.

Dans cette présentation, je partagerai mon parcours personnel à travers la santé mentale pendant mes études universitaires : la dépression, l’échec d’un cours, et le rôle essentiel des services de santé mentale. C’est aussi dans cette période sombre que j’ai trouvé l’écriture comme moyen d’expression et de guérison. Cette démarche m’a permis d’écrire deux livres de poésie, qui racontent mes difficultés et mon chemin vers le mieux-être. À partir de mon expérience, je veux montrer comment l’écriture thérapeutique est une ressource accessible pour les étudiant (es). En s’appuyant sur des exemples concrets, j’explorerai des idées pour que les services de soutien à l’université puissent utiliser cette approche afin d’encourager l’expression de soi, la résilience et l’engagement des étudiant (es).

With the increased marketing of the gambling industry, we deem it important to help youth understand some of the risks and how to participate in these activities safely. Problem gambling rates are higher amongst youth and young adults creating an importance to learn about harm reduction strategies and increase gambling awareness. This workshop will focus on the unconventional activities that may lead to problem gambling habits, discuss how/why youth and young adults are more susceptible to problem gambling, explore the barriers to seeking help created by stigma around problem gambling, and provide participants with knowledge and skills to identify signs of a problem and how to discuss healthy habits/harm reduction strategies with youth.

Topics include: Online Gambling, Unconventional Gambling, Stigmatization, Impacts of Gambling Media (marketing, games, etc.), Signs of Problem Gambling, and Harm Reduction Strategies.

The Canadian Institute for Health Information reports on two Mental Health and Substance Use (MHSU) indicators to understand peoples’ experiences accessing MHSU services. The Navigation (15+) and Early Intervention (age 13-24) indicators tell a story about children, youth and adults navigating MHSU services and highlight gaps in MHSU services across Canada.

Two online self-reported surveys administered annually collect data to support pan-Canadian reporting of these two MHSU indicators.

Survey results from the January-May 2025 data cycle will be highlighted, particularly the age demographic of 18-24. The 2024 data cycle results showed that 43% of eligible respondents reported they always or usually had support navigating MHSU services. In addition, 74% of children and youth reported they accessed community-based MHSU services.

Opportunities for improved health system integration and timely access to MHSU care will be discussed with a focus on populations that experience barriers in access and differences when navigating MHSU services.

International students face unique social (e.g. isolation, loneliness), financial (e.g. struggling to find jobs) and cultural (e.g. racism) challenges that impact their mental health. Access to integrated on-campus and community resources is crucial to international students’ success. This session will highlight initiatives headed by the City of Hamilton to foster a welcoming environment for international students and address some of the challenges that impact their mental health. The initiatives aim to provide equitable access to student supports throughout the international learner’s lifecycle: from their arrival in Canada through graduation and progression into the labour market. The session will highlight the collaboration between City of Hamilton stakeholders — postsecondary institutions, international students, community organizations and employers — to provide interconnected, inclusive, and learner-focused supports.

In 2020, in the days of COVID19 pandemic, the Black Lives Matter movement and the discoveries of the graves of Canada’s Indigenous children of residential schools, 2 mental health therapists at Western University took up a call to action.

We aimed to create a safe and healing space to share race-related lived experiences including race-related stress, navigating environments, renewal and care in a support group format. The purpose was: together in a collective voice to process and learn from each other’s wisdom; create a community to uplift and support one another; and empower through collective healing, growth, and transformation.
In that same spirit, we share our story of 5-year reflections on the challenges and strategies for institutional advocacy to foster capacity for other campus and share forth the lived learnings.

Student engagement plays a critical role in shaping effective campus mental health initiatives. Since the release of the National Standard for Mental Health and Well-Being for Post-Secondary Students in 2020, institutions have taken a student-centered approach to their mental health strategies to ensure that student voices are not only heard but actively contribute to shaping the direction of mental health initiatives on campus. Led by the Mental Health Commission of Canada (MHCC), this session will engage a panel of student leaders in dynamic conversation about how engagement can drive Standard implementation in ways that reflect students’ evolving needs and experiences. The session will open with a context-setting presentation, drawing from recent case studies to showcase real-world examples of how institutions have meaningfully embedded students into the development and implementation of mental health initiatives.

As the opioid crisis continues to evolve, post-secondary institutions must be equipped to prevent and respond to opioid overdoses. In this session, representatives from the University of Toronto and the University of Waterloo will share their collaborative approach to developing and implementing a naloxone policy. This policy empowers Student Wellness staff to respond effectively to overdoses and administer naloxone safely. The presentation will cover foundational information about opioids and naloxone, walk through the policy development process, and explore the opportunities and challenges of naloxone distribution on campus. Attendees will receive a customizable Word document template of the Naloxone policy to support implementation at their own institutions.

Developing successful groups can be challenging in a post-secondary environment. There are many barriers that can lead to low attendance and frustration. Yet, groups can be indispensable for addressing isolation. Groups can be a powerful medium for building connection, community and engagement. In this session we explore components of successful groups with tips, examples, and opportunities for sharing challenges and experiences. We will discuss aspects of establishing and maintaining a range of groups.

Caleb will share insights on providing and implementing peer-run and lead resource-based spaces for students. Em will draw on their experiences facilitating process-oriented psychotherapy groups.

Despite facing high mental health risks, engineering students are known to be more reluctant to seek help than students in other disciplines. This, together with a shortage of therapy dogs in the Waterloo Region, sent the University of Waterloo, Faculty of Engineering Community Well-being Team into the matrix to find innovative, affordable, and sustainable well-being options.

In 2024, in collaboration with students, the Community Well-being team designed and implemented a robotic therapy pet program. Previous research demonstrated that robotic pets can improve psychological outcomes including reduction in loneliness, stress, and anxiety, and help enhance social and communication skills. Since the program’s inception, the robotic pets have enjoyed a dedicated following and are a welcomed addition to wellness events and open houses.

In this session, we will share the history of the program, development and implementation process, as well as challenges and success of the FoE Robotic Pet Program.

The After Hours Peer Support Centre (AHPSC) at Mount Royal University is a student-led, innovative response to the growing demand for accessible mental health support on post-secondary campuses. Recognizing the limitations of traditional 9:00AM – 5:00PM services, the AHPSC fills a critical gap by offering free, confidential, walk-in peer support during evenings and weekends, when few other services are available.

Unique in its approach, the AHPSC utilizes an inclusive, cross-disciplinary model. Students from all faculties are welcomed as peer supporters, and social work practicum students are integrated into service delivery, gaining meaningful, hands-on experience that translate to their future workplaces, communities, and personal relationships.

Rooted in five foundational program pillars, this presentation will highlight how the AHPSC was conceptualized, launched, and evaluated in its inaugural year. We will explore the comprehensive training model, key learnings, and how strategic collaboration within the university community helped advance broader mental health initiatives.

While students come to mental health counselling for a myriad of concerns, challenges with boundaries represent persistent themes that interrelates and exacerbates many of the more typical presenting challenges students wish to address. The range of boundaries students struggle to balance for themselves (including interpersonal, intrapersonal, academic) could be said to follow particular predictable patterns. This session will focus on a multifaceted intervention informed by emotion focused therapy (EFT) and acceptance and commitment therapy (ACT) that provides a visual map for understanding and helping student clients enforce their own boundaries. These visual emotional marker for boundaries are designed to help student shift away from passivity towards acting in line with their values and limits. While this intervention has been utilized within the context of mental health counselling, its broader applications more broadly throughout university structures will be discussed.

OUSA’s presentation seeks to highlight the lived experiences of marginalized students across our member schools and provide insight into the best ways to support these students throughout their post-secondary journey as institutions grapple with maintaining high quality supports during more austere times. Pulling from OUSA’s comprehensive policy library and the qualitative and quantitative results from our Ontario Undergraduate Student Survey (OUSS), OUSA will explore the experiences and mental health effects of studying in Ontario for marginalized students.

This presentation will highlight the unique ways, through student-government and institutional initiatives, and provincial support, that OUSA schools have supported marginalized students. We will provide student-driven policy recommendations that employ a whole-of-community approach that leads to equitable and high-quality supports for marginalized groups.

The Crisis Narrative of Student Mental Health is a macro socio/cultural narrative that has been quietly evolving and driving much of our shared experience over the last 20 years.

This dominant cultural narrative frames mental health challenges of our society as urgent, persistent, overwhelming, and persistently negative – prompting institutions to adopt reactive measures and prioritize immediate needs over long-term solutions. The narrative has highlighted systemic gaps but it has also conflated everyday human experiences with clinical conditions and contributed to an unsustainable level of demand for mental health services.

Responding to this narrative effectively includes the provision of new services that can support entire populations while also normalizing both human distress and help-seeking. This presentation will explore the crisis narrative and examine one institution’s response.

Centennial College will discuss their stepped-care model and discuss the use of a population level digital peer-to-peer support service within their broader mental health strategy.

miyomahcihowin Indigenous Student Wellness is a two-year pilot program developed and launched by Wellness Supports at the University of Alberta. This program provides opportunities for Indigenous post-secondary students to come together in community, participate in wellness activities on campus, and connect with mental health and wellness learnings and resources. This work supports students in grounding themselves in miyo-wîcêhtowin (good relations) as a part of their miyomahcihowin (well-being). We will follow the journey of miyomahcihowin Indigenous Student Wellness so far, including program development, best practices, lessons learned, and plans for the future. We will also look at the miyomahcihowin framework and how it reflects Indigenous principles of relationality and holistic wellness, and what that can mean for Indigenous students within a post-secondary context.

This session will present the development and implementation of a university-wide professional development training program designed to equip peer mentors with the skills and knowledge needed to support students with disabilities in post-secondary education. Grounded in self-regulated and social learning theories, the initiative addresses the gap in accessible mentorship support across campus. Attendees will learn about the needs assessment, curriculum design, and collaborative approach taken to ensure the training is inclusive, practical, and evidence-informed. Lessons learned and feedback from peer mentors and staff will be shared, along with key strategies for implementing similar programs at other institutions. This session is ideal for professionals seeking to enhance peer-led programming, promote accessibility, and improve student retention and success through peer support.

This session will explore how faculty teaching practices and curriculum design can serve as powerful levers to enhance learner well-being, build academic resilience, and support overall student success. The National Standard for Mental Health and Well-being for Post-Secondary Students identifies pedagogy and learning environment strategies (5.4.2.3) as key psychosocial factors influencing student mental health—highlighting the vital role of teaching in shaping student well-being. Drawing on an initiative at Humber Polytechnic—developed in collaboration with Student Wellness & Equitable Learning, Faculty, and Innovative Learning —the presentation will showcase evidence-informed, innovative, and promising teaching practices that support student mental health. Participants will gain insights into how Humber faculty are intentionally leveraging faculty-learner relationships and in-class time to create more supportive and engaging learning environments. The session will also feature student perspectives and share practical tools to inspire and equip educators in embedding well-being into their teaching practice.

Seneca Polytechnic recognized complexities of student needs early on post-Covid-19. We realized, student needed multi-pronged approach in resolving students’ academic, personal, social and health related issues. Student Well-being Specialist role was conceptualized and implemented soon after post-covid. “No wrong door” approach was the central theme to development this role, where in Well-being Specialists work collaboratively with Counselling, Accessible Learning, Medical Center, Student Conduct, Residences, Student Advising, Security, faculty, and all other campus partners to bring collaborative intervention to support students’ wellness and recovery.

With interactive case studies, we would like to demonstrate efficacy of multi-disciplinary approach and embedded clinical intervention through partnerships. These collaborative interventions are of both clinical and non-clinical interventions, wherein clinician (Student Well-being Specialists) and non-clinicians (example, conduct officer, faculty, or security) working together to build care-plan for student success.

This presentation narrates case management model, case studies, challenges and opportunities, and outcomes. This time-tested Seneca model may have promising best practices in campus mental health.

This presentation will provide an overview of a research project focused on addressing knowledge gaps about the experiences of LGBTQ+ students with mental health services at a large Ontario university. Summarizing data gathered from 30 interviews with LGBTQ+ students, 20 interviews with university stakeholders, and a series of engagements with a LGBTQ+ Student Mental Health Advisory Committee, this presentation will focus on how postsecondary mental health services could be enhanced to better support the mental health and wellbeing of diverse LGBTQ+ students. We will discuss the implications of these recommendations for Canadian postsecondary institutions and will encourage discussion amongst participants regarding how our findings may be integrated at their campuses or organizations. Our presentation speaks to the conference theme of hope by presenting our results in an open, inviting way that is oriented toward a belief in system change and social justice to better the lives of diverse LGBTQ+ students.

The Speed Friending event at Mount Royal University (MRU), facilitated by the After Hours Peer Support Center, is an innovative initiative designed to promote social connection and peer support among post-secondary students. Through brief, structured conversation-based games and prompts, the low-barrier, drop-in event encourages the formation of informal support networks through organic social interactions. It also provides students with a safer space to engage in building new connections, empowering them to carry these skills into other areas of life. In response to increasing food insecurity, a complimentary communal meal is offered, highlighting the importance of shared experiences in community building. By extending student interaction beyond academic settings and into inclusive, peer-led environments, Speed Friending strengthens students’ sense of belonging, fosters emotional resilience, and demonstrates the value of peer-to-peer engagement and communal spaces as essential components of holistic wellness in post-secondary education.

This study examines the impact of an online mentorship platform at McGill University designed to connect student mentors with mentees, fostering supportive relationships and enhancing student well-being. The platform facilitates meaningful peer-to-peer connections outside the classroom through a series of structured mentorship programs. An online survey was conducted to assess the experiences of both mentors and mentees, focusing on perceptions of support and personal growth. Preliminary findings for mentees suggest increased sense of community, improved feelings of belonging, reduced isolation and academic pressure, and for mentors, the development of leadership and communication skills. The findings underscore the potential of tech-enabled peer mentorship in promoting social connection and opportunities to expand similar initiatives to support broader student well-being and engagement.

Implementation of measurement-based care (MBC) is a best practice in mental health settings and requires adaptations by both clinicians and clients within the therapeutic relationship. In this presentation, we share key learnings from the implementation of an MBC model integrated within the same day/next day counselling model. Drawing on our own experience and evidence-based practice, we will present six key aspects of effective MBC integration within a campus mental health setting: 1) fostering clinician engagement across an interprofessional counselling team; 2) facilitating translation of knowledge to practice; 3) applying student and staff co-design to increase adoption; 4) engaging a diverse student population in data completion; 5) integrating MBC within clinical supervision, 6) ; and creating an effective feedback loop to inform clinician practice and reinforce adoption. The complexity of establishing common collaborative practices across a multi-campus environment will be highlighted.

This research/presentation examines evidence-based strategies for training clinical and counseling psychology students and practitioners to support the complex mental health needs of refugee youth. Drawing from the STRONG program (Supporting Transition Resilience of Newcomer Groups), a Tier-2 trauma-informed intervention, we highlight findings from four training sessions conducted across universities and agencies in Canada. Each training was delivered over 14 hours across two days and facilitated by clinical psychologists. A total of 39 participants completed pre- and post-training surveys. Findings revealed positive gains in knowledge, skills, and cultural responsiveness. Thematic analysis showed increases in clinical confidence, particularly through role-plays and narrative-based interventions. Participants also voiced concerns about managing triggering content, language barriers, and maintaining cultural safety during implementation. To engage the virtual audience, interactive polls will be used to prompt reflection and discussion on confidence levels, practical strategies, and key components in supporting refugees through clinical interventions.This research/presentation examines evidence-based strategies for training clinical and counseling psychology students and practitioners to support the complex mental health needs of refugee youth. Drawing from the STRONG program (Supporting Transition Resilience of Newcomer Groups), a Tier-2 trauma-informed intervention, we highlight findings from four training sessions conducted across universities and agencies in Canada. Each training was delivered over 14 hours across two days and facilitated by clinical psychologists. A total of 50 participants completed pre- and post-training surveys. Findings revealed positive gains in knowledge, skills, and cultural responsiveness. Thematic analysis showed increases in clinical confidence, particularly through role-plays and narrative-based interventions. Participants also voiced concerns about managing triggering content, language barriers, and maintaining cultural safety during implementation. To engage the virtual audience, interactive polls will be used to prompt reflection and discussion on confidence levels, practical strategies, and key components in supporting refugees through clinical interventions.

Authors: 

Dr. Debbie Chiodo; Rim Banat; Ghina Kayssi and Dr. Soaad Abdelhadi

In today’s post-secondary landscape, conversations around mental health and student conduct have become increasingly interconnected. As student needs grow more complex, student conduct professionals are more frequently addressing cases that involve both behavioural concerns and mental health challenges. In this context, collaboration between conduct professionals and faculty and staff is more important than ever.

In this panel discussion, writing contributors to the CICMH Student Conduct and Mental Health Toolkit will reflect on their experiences and evolving practices in this field. Panelists will share how their institutions are managing complex cases, supporting students in distress, and implementing trauma-informed, equity-based, and accessible approaches within student conduct processes, while balancing accountability and care.

This session will also highlight the development and purpose of the Toolkit and offer insights into how mental health considerations are reshaping campus conduct systems. Whether you support students in day-to-day interactions or are navigating challenging behaviours, this session will help you build confidence in addressing concerns early and using conflict resolution strategies before formal conduct processes are needed.

This presentation explores how Loyalist College uses Etuaptmumk (Two-Eyed Seeing) to guide its student triage model, ensuring Indigenous learners are supported through culturally responsive, relational pathways. Rooted in the understanding that no one system has all the answers, this approach weaves together Indigenous and Western ways of knowing to assess student needs and direct them toward the most appropriate supports: whether they are in the Indigenous Centre, across the college, or in the broader community. By centring relationship, responsibility, and respect, this model recognizes the complicity of student experiences and affirms the importance of cultural safety in mental health and wellness practices.