Honors Students' Research Symposium
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Second row: Mary Fishwick, Grace Swal, Stephanie Cull, and Charles Raum
Front row: Sarah Brown, Dr. Gale D'Andrea, Donald Cooper
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Mental health issues are increasingly common on
college campuses, but can be overlooked amidst the normal stress of work
and classes. Focusing on this growing concern, Honors students in Professor
Gayle D’Andrea’s Honors Sociology 200 class spent the semester working on
research about mental health and substance abuse issues in the community
college population, specifically at Reynolds Community College. The students
collaborated with Professor D’Andrea to compile research for a literature review,
create a survey, gather and interpret data, and begin to implement much needed changes
at the college. On Friday April 6, 2018, three of these Honors students, Donald
Cooper, Stephanie Cull, and Grace Swal were invited to present their research
at the Annual Reynolds Faculty Research Symposium. The students presented
alongside Professor D’Andrea and Dr. Mimi Getachew, discussing the need for
this research, research methods, findings, and future plans. One student
presenter described the opportunity to give a professional presentation “quite
an incredible experience.”
Donald Cooper began by discussing the need for mental
health research aimed at students, he pointed out that current research pertains mainly to
four-year universities, not the community college
population. He also talked about the prevalence of the issues of mental health
and substance abuse in this population. Next, Grace Swal discussed the methodology
behind the research. She spoke about how the sample size was determined, as
well as the process for creating of the survey questions. Finally, Stephanie
Cull highlighted some of the pertinent findings from the research. Researchers
focused on the prevalence of depression and anxiety disorders in Reynolds
students along with the startling statistics on students who are prescribed
medication for these issues but refrain from taking them. Another frightening
statistic discovered in the findings was that one in ten current Reynolds students
have thought about, tried, or made a plan to commit suicide within the past
twelve months. This data was particularly alarming to the researchers. After
the student portion, Dr. Getachew discussed possible future plans to implement
at Reynolds to address the serious needs in these areas.
Not only has this group of staff and students worked
to pinpoint the current issues at Reynolds, they are planning to address these issues for the future. Under the leadership and mentoring of
Professor D’Andrea, these students have been able to be a part of something
much bigger than just another class and semester. Honors courses attempt to
prepare students for research they will undertake in upper level courses after
transfer; Professor D’Andrea’s engaging student-led research model takes this
goal to a higher level, involving students in data collection and methodology. Thanks
to Professor D’Andrea and Dr. Getachew, these students are actively making a
difference in their community.
