All for NarWELL by Parsons MS SDM

All for NarWELL

Linda Han

Tanvi Kulkarni

Ncobile Mukasa

Dr. Adam Brown

Center for Global Mental Health

Background Data

From NCHA 2023 Spring Data for The New School n = 1491

Stress

78.9% of students reported to having a medium to high levels of stress overall

Community

Only around ⅓ of students reported to agreeing or strongly agreeing that TNS is a campus where individuals look out for each other

Belongingness

Only 31.6% of students reported that they agree or strongly agree that: I feel that students’ health and well-being is a priority at my college/university

Distress

80.2% of the students reported having moderate to serious psychological distress

The New School has been awarded a 3-year, $306,000 Garrett Lee Smith Campus Suicide Prevention Grant from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) to enhance mental health awareness and suicide prevention. This grant supports consistent mental health screenings, evidence-based training, and wellness programming, equipping students, faculty, and staff to recognize and respond to mental health concerns. As a result, we launched the All for NarWELL Initiative for Mental Health and Suicide Prevention—a collaborative, data-driven approach to improving student wellness. This initiative integrates suicide prevention training, screenings, wellness programs, and educational campaigns, with a focus on supporting diverse and high-risk student populations.

GRANT GOALS

Campus infrastructure, and collaboration with community behavioral healthcare providers

Increase outreach and early intervention efforts to prevent mental health crisis & to increase help-seeking behavior 1. 3. 4.

TRAIN OUTREACH

college students, faculty, and staff to respond effectively to students at-risk

SCREEN IMPROVE

Increase the number of voluntary mental health and substance use disorder screenings and assessments

university's ability to identify students at risk by examining and using student health assessment measures and data

Mental Health Commission of Canada. (2021). Toolkit for e-mental health implementation. https://mentalhealthcommission.ca/resource/toolkit-for-e-mental-health-implementation/

Suicide Intervention Trainings

Suicide intervention trainings such as C-SSRS (Columbia-Suicide Severity Rating Scale), QPR Training, SafeTALK Training, and through online platforms such as Kognito and Mindwise SOS has been provided through the initiative.

As of Sep 2025, more than 600 individuals at The New School are trained in a suicide intervention training.

Psychological First Aid (PFA)

PFA training is a 3-hour training, developed by the Red Cross and WHO for humanitarian contexts.

Center for Global Mental Health has adapted the training to serve higher education, local community-based organizations and other contexts. It is available both online and in-person.

As of Sep 2025, 380 individuals at The New School are trained in PFA

“…the most helpful part was running the scenarios we face with one another (acting it out) and we ran out of time! If we do this again (and we deﬁnitely should because it was awesome) we need to have it be longer OR allocate much more time to acting out scenarios that our technicians face every day…”

“Informative, and made the topic (of helping others) digestible using diﬀerent techniques…”

“This training is important, everyone in the community should do it, teaching skills on how to identify stress and the role you play in de-escalating the situation. If faculty learned these skills it could change the way they initially react in the situations that end up causing stress for students (language etc). “

AWARENESS

● Simple awareness raising events, such as tabling with quick activities alongside easily accessible resource materials

● Social Media Outreach via Instagram

● Collaborative Events with ofﬁces such as Residential Education, Making Center, Student Health Services, and more!

● Utilizing peer-to-peer platforms such as Togetherall

At least 3,000 individuals has engaged in an All for NarWELL event, exposed to the mental health awareness messages, and or participated in a collaboration event throughout the grant period.

Adaptation and Implementation Making Center

Dec 2023

Initial Meeting

Mar 2024

PFA Training for Staff, Feedback Surveys

Jan 2025 Aug 2024

Summer Mindfulness Workshops, QPR Training

PFA Training for Staff, Mindfulness Workshop

Making Center Mindfulness Workshops

Structure Data Collection

Introduction to Mindfulness: Focused on foundational practices such as mandala drawing, body-scan meditation and mindful breathing.

Suicide Prevention and Intervention: Introduced techniques for recognizing and responding to mental health crises with QPR training.

Conﬂict De-escalation: Used role-playing and mindfulness activities to develop skills for managing challenging interactions.

Data collection involved pre- and post-session surveys to assess the program's effectiveness. These qualitative assessments captured participants' perceptions of the training’s applicability to their professional roles and its impact on their well-being. Additionally, focus groups provided deeper insights into the participants' experiences, emphasizing the program’s value in community building and enhancing workplace relationships.

Qualitative Interview

Anonymous Quotes

“... wanted to emphasize again that these are [were] a series of initiatives extraordinarily successful”

It was memorable “hearing students, first year mentors reference it [All for NarWELL & trainings] especially with regard[s] for strategies for intervention”

Individuals felt that “access to ongoing trainings could be of great use to staff, to focus on wellness promotion” for both the students & staff population

“hear[d] in faculty meetings that they want more of this [All for NarWELL & trainings]”

“Wellness permeates every aspect of curricular life…” therefore the initiative was important & helpful in improving student life as well

Due to the trainings, they “feel more empathic and more confident when navigating these difficult questions”

All for NarWELL has been an extremely important initiative on our New School campus. The training modules and platforms have reached many New School community members who otherwise would have not been reached. It has better prepared our community to identify signs of concern, effectively connect with, support, and refer our community members in need of support and resources. The project has also involved many of our students in reaching out to their peers across campus which we know is a great way for students to take in important information and know where to turn when needed.

…the sense of solidarity has been critically important (in regards to how All for NarWELL has connected different ofﬁces)

Our collaboration with All for NarWELL has been especially beneficial for Making Center staff, improving our confidence and sense of agency in operating facilities supporting students. It has helped us hold safer, more respectful spaces while also building greater clarity on available resources when difficult situations arise. Knowing we have a strong support system allows us to better navigate challenges and foster a more inclusive and supportive environment for everyone. Additionally, I think All for NarWELL has had an impact on the broader campus community, fostering a culture of well-being that enhances both individual and collective creativity. Through its programming, we’ve seen how prioritizing wellness supports not just student health but also their ability to fully engage in their work at the Making Center. By integrating these initiatives into our space, we’ve helped create an environment where we hope students feel more balanced and inspired while also being included in a collective culture of respect as they explore their creative potential.