TW: The following article contains graphic content and mentions of suicide.
Following the death of a 33-year-old Cambridge man who jumped from the 26th floor of 33 Harry Agganis Way on Feb. 15, Boston University academics questioned whether BU had revered its commitment to providing intellectual fitness resources good enough and on campus.
StuVi II citizens won an email related to the Residence Life incident the next day.
Since then, all BU academics have earned two emails: one from the Main Health Office and the other from Student Health Services (SHS). to the citizens of StuVi II who need support.
Tami Gordon, a sophomore in the College of Arts and Sciences, said the university’s two email responses after the StuVi II incident were sufficient.
“[The emails] feel like the bare minimum and anything above that is more functional,” Gordon said. There is a desire from the students. “
Gordon said they sought to have the email sent to StuVi II citizens also sent to other BU scholars, as everyone on campus is concerned in the BU community.
“Even though we don’t live [in StuVi II], there’s still a network on campus that will be affected by protection issues, intellectual fitness issues and suicide issues,” Gordon said.
In 2021, BU academics shared disappointments about how the University dealt with an incident at 10 Buick St.
On September 27, 2021, a fire in StuVi I forced citizens to evacuate the construction for about 3 hours. The University has not yet made an official announcement about the incident.
At the time of the incident and in the weeks that followed, many BU academics said they obtained little information about the situation, and some said the University had shown a lack of transparency regarding the circumstances. evacuation.
In 2021, then-CAS graduate Ayanna Moise recounted her experience in an interview with The Daily Free Press. Moise said he went through StuVi I when police arrived.
“I felt like it was genuine, I didn’t think it was a [fire] drill,” he said. The next thing you know, we got a text message [from our friend] that there’s a detective and cops approaching. “
Also in 2021, CAS graduate Angel Estrada said she saw former student dean Kenneth Elmore at the scene. Estrada said investigators told academics that an “incident” on the 7th floor of StuVi I’s east tower caused sprinklers to fail. Moise added that Elmore told scholars that evacuation is a “precaution. “
“I thought it was serious when I saw Dean Elmore coming,” Estrada said.
BU spokesman Colin Riley wrote in an email in 2021 that there was “a fireplace in a room on the east side of the building,” which was shown in a Boston Fire Department report.
Estrada said that some time after the incident, her friend told her through a facility worker that there was more to the story than just a chimney alarm.
“I told him there had been a suicide attempt with some kind of carbon monoxide or propane in his room, and that set off alarms. I know there were injuries because there were ambulances and there was a stretcher,” Estrada said.
Boston EMS arrived at the scene and the student was transported to a local hospital with no burns observable from the fire, according to the BFD report. The report corroborated the alleged suicide attempt.
A student at Questrom School of Business and a resident of StuVi, he was a third-year student in 2021. The student, who asked to remain anonymous at the time of the incident, said he was concerned and after the incident. The student said he had not won any alert about an evacuation.
The anonymous student added that Residence Life told them not to spread rumors.
“It looked like they were going to keep the stage a secret,” the anonymous student said.
Amanda Geist, a 2021 CAS graduate and senior major, said BU can and deserves to do more by offering more to students, saying “something wants to be said about the students’ discontent here. “
“They deserve to comment on the higher suicide rates and acknowledge what happened without revealing details,” he said. “We can’t just pretend other people aren’t unhappy, because that’s how those things go on. “
Kara Cattani, director of behavioral medicine at BU, wrote in an email that SHS had “mobilized” to raise awareness among academics who were connected to the February 2023 StuVi II incident.
“We provide a combination of crisis intervention recommendation (individual professional counseling) and less formal opportunities to bring peers together and make room to share considerations,” Cattani wrote. StuVi II, to provide psychoeducation and data on counselling/support resources. “
Cattani wrote that behavioral medicine works heavily with the Office of the Dean of Students (DOS) and DOS is looking to place tactics in BU systems to better help students.
“We are still checking how academics are doing after the traumatic StuVi II incident,” Cattani wrote.
Emma Lutz, a third-year student at CAS, said the University alerted the BU network with official data about what happened at Stuvi II before everyone started spreading rumors and hypotheses that weren’t based on “real and false data. “
“When BU said something about it after all, [it was] time for the rumors to start,” Lutz said. “The moment [BU] sent an email . . . All he says is ‘in light of an incident’ and it’s simply ‘here are his links again. ‘”
Lutz added that the ties are “far apart” and that she would prefer “an established campus workplace” where students can ask for help at any time.
“These selling options exist, but I don’t necessarily think they’re useful,” Lutz said. “Basically, all schools are companies, so they will try to cover up things like this to trap future students. “
Lutz said he believes the existing SHS system, which asks patients to send a message and schedule an appointment electronically on Patient Connect, does not provide information to others in intellectual fitness crisis.
Lutz said he believes the university’s reaction to the incident is a way for principals to “tick a box” to appease students.
“It’s a bandage on a bullet hole,” Lutz said.
Anne Gehrenbeck-Shim, a senior lecturer in BU’s Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, said death affects other people in other ways.
“I know there were obviously mental problems at school, etc. , but I think it affects other people in other ways, whether it’s in the visual photographs that someone carries with them or if it reminds them of other losses or other significant deaths,” Gehrenbeck said.
Gehrenbeck-Shim said she believes it’s important to have “some kind of recognition” of the incident.
Lutz said he believes the intellectual fitness crisis is rarely just a BU problem, and said he hopes the university will be more transparent about incidents occurring on campus.
“[BU should] be proactive in addressing the problem,” he said. “Explain loudly and transparently to your students that the facilities are there and will help you. “
Gehrenbeck-Shim added that those with intellectual fitness problems should not be afraid to speak out.
“What I check to remind other people is that there are supports available and I hope no one has to suffer alone,” she said.
If you or someone enjoyed has suicidal thoughts, call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 988 or 1-800-273-8255. You can get a list of additional resources at SpeakingOfSuicide. com/resources.
BU network members can also book electronic student fitness appointments through Patient Connect, call their 24-hour hotline (617-353-3569) for intellectual fitness emergencies, or get recommendations for addressing demanding situations in https://www. bu. edu/shs/behavioral-medicine/behavioral-resources/.
Madhri Yehiya, chairman of the board and editor of Fall 2021 Campus News, contributed to this article.
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