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Emergencies & After-Hours Care

Response to University Tragedy

How to respond when a student, faculty, or staff suffers a death, tragedy, or accident

First and foremost, please do not hesitate to call the Senior Director of Counseling and Mental Health Care, or the Student Assistance Services Assistant Director to help guide you through this process.

Suggestions for the group impacted by the tragedy:

  • Share the information that is known.
    • Please understand that with social media and other forms of communication, we do not always have all of the information.  In the case of a death, the family needs to be notified before information can be released.
  • Offer a future gathering space that may include:
    • A place to relax and feel supported.
    • Structured activities (letter writing to family, sharing of stories, pet therapy, etc.). Please contact Student Assistance Services regarding the process for sending letters to family.
    • Possibly inviting different professionals to help facilitate a discussion related to the grief process, such as a counselor from Mental Health Services, someone that is faith based and connected to the impacted group, and/or someone that is directly related to the group whose presence would be helpful.
  • Share resources. These university departments play key roles:
    • Student Assistance Services (SAS): SAS offers support and guidance. Though they do not offer university excused absences, they can help guide the process of communicating with professors. They also help to connect with Mental Health Services.
    • Mental Health Services 
      • Mental Health Services has counselors available during regular work hours (8 a.m. - 4 p.m. Monday - Friday) for scheduled appointments as well as crisis intervention counselors if needed.
      • TELUS Health Student Support offers free, confidential, immediate mental health assistance with a professional counselor 24/7 via app, phone and web.
      • Mental Health Services counselors can go out to groups to help process grief and loss reactions upon request.
    • Critical Incident Response Team (CIRT): Anytime that the University Police Department is called regarding a student accident, hospitalization, and/or death, a member of the CIRT team responds and shares campus resources to those impacted.

These Grief Guidelines can help you in your leadership role.