The mass shooting that took place on Monday, Feb. 13 at MSU left campus shocked and students traumatized. Since then, students and faculty have been advocating for change and the university has been taking action to support students academically and with their mental health.
The Student Support Plan is a three-level plan the university has been implementing since the shooting.
The Green Level is a high-level response, designed to help those students impacted most deeply by the shooting. These individuals include roommates and partners of the deceased and injured, as well as those that were in the classroom at the time of the shooting. There are approximately 150 students in this group. The action responses for this level include mentors, lump-sum grants and academic accommodations with extraordinary academic flexibility.
The White Level is a medium-level response, for students who were deeply impacted but didn’t witness the shooting. Action responses include small support group meetings of three to five students and academic accommodations.
The Bronze Level is a lower-level response, and these student groups will be monitored over the course of their years at MSU. These individuals include sorority and fraternity life and food court workers. Action responses include academic accommodations.
Assistant provost and executive director Alexis Travis leads this plan through the university's health and wellbeing division.
Travis said that interim president Teresa Woodruff has asked for a supportive services work group to be put together. There are four different groups working across the university in response to the shooting on Feb. 13.
“In terms of strategic plans, we're looking at things that are called out in terms of equity, making sure that we're engaging and empowering and elevating the Spartan voice using data to drive our approach to diversity, equity and inclusion,” Travis said.
She said the university is working toward establishing a culture of health, safety and well-being across the entire campus and among other community members who were impacted.
In an effort to support students this semester, MSU has implemented credit-no credit grade reporting options for spring semester 2023. Students are asked to schedule an appointment with their academic advisor to ensure they are making the most informed choices for their individual academic plans.
Students will be able to review their posted grades starting May 10 and the deadline to select the credit or no credit option is May 17.
MSU has 24/7 virtual crisis counseling available for students through Counseling and Psychiatric Services, or CAPS, which was also available prior to the shooting. Students call 517-355-8270, press one and then can immediately speak with a crisis counselor.
CAPS resumed on the Thursday after the shooting and is available from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Monday through Friday at the Olin Health Center.
“We also were able to set up a counseling center working with the city of East Lansing at the Hannah Community Center and that's been in operation for most of the last three weeks,” Travis said.
Members of the American Red Cross had been available and on-site helping operate the center.
Travis said this off-campus counseling center was also set up for students who may have been too afraid to come back to campus, or for students who didn’t live on campus. Over 200 community volunteer counselors identified themselves and said they were willing to provide counseling services.
“We've also had really great support from MSU Health Care Psychiatry and they've offered free services on campus as well,” Travis said.
"Reflect and connect" sessions have developed since the shooting as well. A total of 1,387 people have participated.
“One of the most important things to us has been really meeting people where they're at and understanding that everybody's experience is different," Travis said. "Some people had experienced trauma before the shootings on February 13, and some folks had close proximity to those who were injured or killed. Everyone will feel differently, and that's okay.”
Travis has helped join 11 units with the MSU Health and Wellbeing Division.
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“The goal is really to make sure that we're setting a culture of health for the MSU community,” Travis said. “We're providing resources, services, and education to help people be able to live healthy lives.”
The broad group of units includes the Center for Survivors, CAPS, Employee Assistance Program, the health promotion team, Health for You, Occupational Health, Resource Center for Persons with Disability, Safe Place, Student Health Services, Travel Clinic and Work-Life Office.
“We want to really hear from students, faculty and staff about what their experiences are, what their needs are in regards to health and well-being so that we can identify priorities, and then develop a plan for the university to move forward,” Travis said. “The bottom line for us is that we just want everybody to know that we're here for you. We have an array of services and are committed to listening and continuing to meet the needs of Spartans now and also in the future.”
