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What’s Now, What’s Next: A Dittmar Review

Posted by Taylor Hayden

Tucked away in Norris, the Dittmar Memorial Gallery brings together community members in creative spaces. Following a year of distinctive exhibits from regional artists, Dittmar will feature Northwestern Art Theory & Practice seniors in upcoming show “Feelings?” The work of these three students investigates identity construction and how we interact with the world around us.

‘How do our memories shape us?’ is the central question of Imprints of the Mind, the April 7 – 28 exhibit. Artists in the Evanston and Northwestern community submitted work to answer this timeless question in collage, paint, and sculpture. The April 28 closing reception for the exhibit will present the competition winners and serve light refreshments from 6-8 p.m.

Before Imprints of the Mind, Dittmar hosted Brittney Leeanne Williams’ exhibit Neither Free | Nor, which investigates the suffering and transcendence of the Black body. During her talk, Williams built on visitors’ questions to create an intimate conversation with friends of the artist, community members, and students.

Embracing the Chaos, Erin Elizabeth’s work questioned the purpose of celebration and meaning people assign to experiences like a celebration. Elizabeth employed unique media in her provocations, from gold leaf to cake. 

The Dittmar student team makes sure to host a variety of exhibits, said Claire Toomey, a Dittmar gallery assistant and Medill first-year who is part of the artist selection process. As an assistant, Toomey also coordinates event requests, helps with the installation process, and files submissions. If you missed the fall’s exhibits, you can browse photos from Build Her a Myth and Anonymous Women here. 

Throughout the year, Dittmar not only exhibits “emerging and underrepresented” work in exciting mediums (yes, even cake and confetti), but also hosts open mics, artist talks, and events. Interested in hosting an event in this unique space? Submit this request form and review the space guidelines. 

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Report a Concern Quickly and Confidentially with NUhelp

Posted by Taylor Hayden

Imagine walking around campus, casually minding your own business, when you suddenly spot something concerning happening. Unsure of what to do, you stop and hesitate. You’d like to help, but you don’t know what appropriate action to take. Is there a way to get involved without risking your own safety? The answer is yes.

Report a concern quickly and confidentially with NUhelp. In cases like the one above, it’s best to call 911 if you have a pressing or immediate concern, but otherwise, the NUhelp app has a feature specifically designed for students to report any concerns they have. When you first enter the NUhelp app, the Report feature is the dark red box at the bottom right hand corner. Once you select the Report option, you’ll be asked to fill out a form with the concern’s relevant details. These include the location, date, and description of the incident you’re reporting. Other optional details include uploading a photo of the incident or identifying the person or groups involved. These reports are then sent to the Dean of Students Office for review.

The NUhelp Report feature is not meant to be used for incidents of sexual misconduct or hate & bias. There is a separate form that can be found on the University’s website here. The NUhelp feature is meant for general concerns that violate University policies and/or threaten the safety of students, such as (but not limited to) academic concerns, relationship issue/violence, self-harm, vandalism, and more.

If you don’t know what category the incident falls under, choose the closest option and report it anyway. It’s always better to be safe than sorry. The NUhelp app’s Report feature is for students to responsibly and safely share their concerns with the University. So the next time you see something happening, just pull out your phone and report the incident.

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Step Up: Sexual Assault Awareness Month

Posted by Taylor Hayden

Join CARE and partner organizations in working to prevent sexual violence and promote healthy sexuality throughout April, Sexual Assault Awareness Month, and beyond. You can support the powerful work of these groups and build your skills through opportunities like CARE classes on the impact of sexual violence and trainings on survivor support.

Sexual Assault Awareness Month was born from an activist history. According to the National Sexual Violence Resource Center, groups in the 1970s began holding Take Back the Night events, usually including a rally, speak out, and vigil. In the 1980s, a week in April was chosen to concentrate programming. Sadly, such activism remains crucial, especially on college campuses – one in five women and one in 16 men being sexually assaulted while in college.

In addition to annual events like Take Back the Night, hosted by College Feminists, Northwestern’s month of programming also includes opportunities to learn more. The Resource Exhibition on April 6 and April 13 showcased related community resources. By joining quarterly meetings of the Campus Coalition on Sexual Violence, which meets on May 3rd for the spring, you can become more involved in supporting this important cause.

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Health Care Deciphered: Patient Advocacy Coordinators are Here to Help

Posted by Taylor Hayden

The health care system is nothing if not confusing. Learning to navigate the health care system on our own, many of us for the first time, can be a huge challenge. Luckily for us, Health Services has introduced a Patient Support Services program to help make sense of it all.

Director of Health Services Brian Druley lead the charge with developing this unique program. Druley’s vision centered on one thing: integrating student learning into the health services process. To accomplish this goal, the department instituted Patient Advocacy Coordinators at both the Evanston and Chicago campuses.

He said that although he looked to other schools for inspiration, this program is the most expansive of any he’s seen. “I wasn’t really finding any one particular university health service that was doing it all the way I was visualizing it,” Druley said. “I began to build my own conceptualization of what a patient advocate should be.”

Adebola Adeniyi, the Evanston campus’s coordinator, and Wendy Weaver, the Chicago campus’s, act as a “personal health care concierge” for students, according to Druley.

Adeniyi and Weaver can help talk students through every step of the healthcare process— starting with scheduling diagnostic tests and coordinating medical evaluations and interpreting health insurance coverage for those processes, all the way through deciphering billing information and insurance benefits after care is no longer necessary.

“Everything that’s a question that you have once you leave the exam room, those are questions you can ask a Patient Advocacy Coordinator,” Druley said. “Even things like patient satisfaction. If you’re frustrated with the care or had different expectations for the care you thought you needed, we can also help out in that type of situation.”

Druley also noted the benefits a Patient Advocacy Coordinator could present to international students who are learning to navigate an entirely new health care system. Especially because of the clinic-style approach that the University takes, it can be confusing to students who are used to a more long-term patient-doctor relationships.

To better judge what problems need to be addressed within health care accessibility, Health Services gives biannual satisfaction surveys to health services users to assess the gaps in students’ understanding of the resources available to them. The survey also allows Patient Support Services to grow by continually assessing what works well and where there is still room for improvement.

Most notably, Druley said that as the program progresses he hopes to see improvements in its ability to address students’ financial hardships. “I was aware of it before, but now I’m much more deeply aware of the specific challenges our students have,” he said. “Once we aggregate our data after our first full year here this summer, I would be much better prepared to have a much better understanding of what we might be able to work on in terms of addressing financial hardship for our overall student population.”

The introduction of this program is a big step toward improving the process of using health care and taking the burden off of the shoulders of any students struggling to understand the services.

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No Car, No Problem: Let SafeWalk Help Get You Home

Posted by Taylor Hayden

Ever heard of the saying, “there’s an app for that”? Well, it’s a saying that certainly rings true for Northwestern students. The NUhelp app is designed to help members of the Northwestern community navigate safety and wellness. Designed completely in-house by Northwestern employees, the app includes several features that are meant to help Northwestern students stay safe and healthy on campus, including Safewalk.

For students who stay out late at night and are worried about walking home alone, you’re not alone. SafeWalk is an accessible option for Northwestern students on the Evanston campus, in addition to calling on SafeRide or using the blue light system. You simply click on the SafeWalk feature in the NUhelp app, drop the little pin to your destination, and select a contact to inform in case you don’t reach your destination in the estimated time. Once you reach your destination, you can turn the text notification off. If you don’t reach your destination for whatever reason, SafeWalk will send a text to your contact with further instructions on trying to reach you and then contacting the police.

You can use SafeWalk once you setup your Profile in the NUhelp app, which is a simple matter of entering your student ID, NetID, and Northwestern email into the app. Additionally, the SafeWalk app doesn’t automatically turn off when you reach your destination. So before you head straight for bed and crash, make sure to turn off the text notification lest you accidentally start an Evanston-wide search.

(Note: SafeWalk will require access to your contacts and notifications. For more information on NUhelp’s disclaimers, visit their disclaimer information page)

For more details on how to use SafeWalk, visit this NUhelp page.

SafeWalk is far from the only benefit that the NUhelp app offers. Keep an eye on our blog for detailed looks at some additional features the app houses!

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Destress and Decompress with CAPS Spring Stress Clinics

Posted by Taylor Hayden

It can be difficult to remember to take care of ourselves during stressful times, especially when surrounded by hectic schedules filled with tests, projects, papers, meetings, and more. Often, we feel like we don’t have the time to work through emotional upheavals and shove our stress to the side. In fact, sometimes we can’t even tell when we’re stressed.

CAPS at Northwestern offers resources to help manage stress beyond clinical appointments and consulting. Sign-ups are now available for Stress Management Clinics during spring quarter. These Stress Management Clinics deal with a variety of issues and coping techniques surrounding stress and are available to all Northwestern community members free of charge.

Success Strategies is a four part workshop that focuses primarily on how to manage stress. It covers topics such as identifying physical and emotional symptoms to understand when you are under stress, and how to manage stress in your life more effectively. Designed to deal with stress stemming from academic or personal issues, this workshop aims to act as a resource for students dealing with anxiety, trouble focusing and more. Visit the Success Strategies workshop page to sign up.

To balance mind and body, CAPS offers drop-in meditation hours in Searle Hall. No registration is necessary for this, and students are welcome to come as often or as little as they like. Meditation is a great way to manage the stressors of everyday life, and through this workshop, you’ll have the chance to learn and practice this technique for managing stress.

Mindfulness is popular technique that focuses on using present-moment awareness to monitor your body. The Introduction to Mindfulness workshops teach students how to improve concentration and decrease negative reactivity to distressing situations in a four-part workshop. Available on both Evanston and Chicago campuses, sign up by visiting the Introduction to Mindfulness page and view available groups and times.

For those struggling with attention or focus, CAPS’ Enhancing Attention through Mindfulness may help. Workshop participants will have the opportunity to try several evidence-based mindfulness techniques that help strengthen short-term memory, attention, and concentration. Locations, dates, and times are all available for sign-ups on the CAPS workshop page.

Relaxing is the opposite of stress, and our bodies need time to recover not just physically, but mentally and emotionally. Relaxation and Biofeedback is a four-part experiential workshop that practices a variety of relaxation techniques such as visualization, muscle relaxation, and autogenic breathing. Having a relaxed body and state of mind can help you feel better and study more effectively.

If none of these workshops sound like the right fit for you, visit CAPS during their Drop-In Stress Management Resource Center hours. Meant to improve your well being, these times are tailored to your needs with various accommodations such as egg chairs and biofeedback training.

Spring quarter can be a trying time for everyone, and stress is often  ignored as we focus on the “big picture” or try to move past our emotional struggles. We encourage you to take time for yourself and focus on your personal needs. CAPS is a resource for you and whatever your needs are.

Workshops begin in late April or early May. Check each individual page for times and sign up deadlines!

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NUDM Encourages Inclusivity and Learning

Posted by Taylor Hayden

Northwestern University Dance Marathon 2017 was wildly successful, not just because it raised $1,253,596 for this year’s beneficiary GiGi’s Playhouse, but also because of the organization’s own inclusivity efforts. In recent years, NUDM has strived to become more financially accessible to students and has reached out to the community, holding events that deal with issues related to that year’s beneficiary.

2017 marks the third year that the Office of the President has covered the $35 registration fee for students on financial aid, ensuring that the initial cost isn’t a deterrent for anyone. The number of students receiving a fee waiver this year followed the steady upward trend in the past three years. Additionally, the February launch of the SES One Form has also streamlined the process for students applying for extracurricular financial aid, which includes NUDM.

NUDM created its first-ever Grant Campaign Program in conjunction with the Office of Student Enrichment Services. Through money raised from various fundraising outlets such as corporate sponsors and Northwestern faculty members, NUDM was able to match funds for students having difficulty fundraising and/or receiving university financial aid. The Residence Hall Association, Residential College Board, Panhellenic Association, and Interfraternity Council all supported this grant effort along with a general faculty and staff fund. Students were able to anonymously apply for funds from the Grant Campaign to be allocated to their fundraising pages and almost 100 students’ fundraising efforts were ultimately assisted by the new program.

NUDM has also taken steps to help new dancers find their feet and make more resources readily available to help raise money for the cause. This year, the NUDM mentorship advisor program paired members of the Dancer and Beneficiary committee together with new dancers, working together to make planning and fundraising a more approachable process. Additionally, 2017 is the second year of the Community Engagement co-chair positions, leading to new partnerships with student groups and five new dancer teams as a result.

In addition to financial outreach, NUDM has continually provided educational opportunities surrounding each year’s beneficiaries. For the past two years, NUDM has looked beyond fundraising for various programs and focused on an overarching message larger than the programming itself. This year, NUDM expanded upon those efforts with its partnership with GiGi’s Playhouse, a nonprofit organization that focuses on therapeutic programming and support to individuals with Down syndrome. NUDM focused on an overarching message of awareness and acceptance of people of different abilities. Working with Beyond Compliance, a new student group that acts as a safe space and advocates for students with disabilities, NUDM hosted a panel of students with varying ability levels to discuss how disabilities affect their lives at Northwestern. The event brought different student groups together and united them around common themes of inclusion.

Through developing partnerships with other groups and campus populations that haven’t traditionally participated, NUDM is growing to become a more inclusive philanthropy organization. The yearlong campaign that raised awareness for GiGi’s Playhouse succeeded in educating the community about relevant issues. NUDM’s inclusivity efforts have elevated it from a popular student activity to a meaningful and accessible way for students to engage and give back.

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Women in Leadership Workshops Explore Gender in a Modern Context

Posted by Taylor Hayden

This past fall, Northwestern’s Leadership and Community Engagement department (housed within Campus Life) introduced its new series, Women in Leadership. This cohort meets six times over the course of one quarter to discuss and explore various aspects of the intersection between gender and leadership.

“We have a pretty multifaceted mission,” Assistant Director of Leadership & Community Engagement Adrian Bitton said.“Ultimately what we want to do is empower women and build their leadership self-efficacy.”

The group accomplishes this goal through a focus on educating members. Each week, participants explore different concepts together related to women in leadership. Bitton also credits the series’s structure with creating a productive learning environment. “The particular pedagogical style of having a cohort that meets repeatedly creates relationships among the women and builds trust and vulnerability so they can share authentically in their experiences and perspectives around women in leadership,” she said.

Bitton said they also try to create a solution-oriented focus for the women in the program. “We not only try to deconstruct ideas around women in leadership,” she said, “but we also say how can we empower and support one another and build each other up as we overcome some of these obstacles that we might experience based on our gender in a leadership context.”

Thanks to this combination, the cohort’s coordinators said that they consistently see growth amongst the women that participate throughout their time together.

Graduate Assistant for Leadership and Community Engagement Jazminn Williams said, “We talk about the confidence gap between men and women, and I think that whether [participants] are a first or fourth year walking in, there’s a lack of confidence. I want them to walk away knowing that they can be like the leaders that they see every day.”

Williams said she thinks this is an important part of changing the way women see themselves and are seen within a leadership context.

“Women matter!” Williams said. “I think that learning how much we’re socialized to think certain ways and to know that there are other ways to navigate and be leaders is definitely important. Building that conversation allows them to take what they’re learning and have those conversations with their friends, families, student groups, and start to dismantle that socialization.”

They’re off to a good start working toward this goal; the group saw nearly perfect retention rates for both the fall and winter groups.

Over the course of the upcoming years, Bitton and Williams said they hope to grow the program further. “Right now we’re following the energy that’s already there,” Bitton said. “We’re building a cache of student leaders who want to facilitate, and we’re hoping to eventually run multiple cohorts each quarter with unique tracks.”

The upcoming series begins April 17. Enrollment has already closed, but be sure to keep an eye out for new installments of the cohort in upcoming quarters.

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Norris Starbucks Awarded Team of the Quarter

Posted by Taylor Hayden

If you’ve visited the Norris Starbucks recently, you’ve now officially been to the Starbucks with the best team in the Chicagoland area. The team received the Store Team of the Quarter Award for the October-December quarter from their national corporate offices.

When they found out about the award, the whole team was “jumping up and down with excitement,” Manager in Training Gina Tuch said with a laugh. “It gave our team a nice boost of confidence.”

“It shows that our hard work is paying off,” Retail Manager Craig Rapacz added.

And indeed it has paid off. After implementing new training practices, keeping a close eye on stocking techniques, and ensuring that it’s always properly staffed, Norris Starbucks’ sales have increased 25% percent from last year.

The award is based not only on this increase in sales but on the overall quality of experience that the team provides for customers. Corporate analyzes the team’s efficiency of customer service and cleanliness, as well as looking at their adherence to Starbucks’ national brewing standards and practices.

Tuch said the store faces some unique challenges because it’s located in a university student center rather than a stand alone building. “We have very different traffic patterns,” Tuch explained. “But we usually know when Norris will be having events and we can be prepared for more people.”

Tuch noted that the team’s goal is to maintain their success by fostering “loyalty amongst our customers and keep them coming back.”

Rapacz said, “We’re just going to keep doing what we’re doing and keep our customer service above and beyond.”

Next time you stop at Norris Starbucks, be sure to congratulate everyone, and know that your coffee is made by an award-winning staff.

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Religious & Spiritual Life Promotes Inclusivity for Interfaith Month

Posted by Taylor Hayden

This April is Wildcat Interfaith Month, which offers students an opportunity to share how their religious or spiritual identities inform their worldview. It is also a time where students from diverse backgrounds come together to listen, understand, and respect each other’s perspectives.

To celebrate, Religious & Spiritual Life will host an Interfaith Passover Seder at 6:00 p.m. on April 5 in Parkes Social Hall. Also in Parkes Social Hall, on April 20 at 6:00 p.m., don’t miss the second annual Wildcat Langar, where students will enjoy a vegetarian meal and learn about the Sikh tradition of service to humanity. Finally, Soul Sounds: An Interfaith Concert will feature music and artistic expressions from various traditions on April 23 at 3:00 p.m. in Alice Millar Chapel.

In the spirit of Wildcat Interfaith Month, Religious & Spiritual Life is also excited to announce that a task force has recently convened to repurpose Parkes 204 as a Multi-Belief Space. This addition to the Religious Center will accommodate students’ ever-increasing need to have a dedicated, neutral space for religious ritual, communal prayer, or contemplation.

Creating this space provides support to our entire community but is especially important for those who may not have their own physical space, like Buddhists, Sikhs, Muslims, Native Americans, and more. This kind of space encourages the rapport, development of relationships, and dialogue between belief systems which may not happen in other places on campus. It will be an open and welcome place for all, and the task force is excited to make it a reality with the help of our entire community.

RSL would like the community to consider helping them achieve this goal by donating to Catalyzer and sharing the fundraising page via social media or email. In honor of this year’s graduating class, they ask that you consider making a gift of $20.17; however, every gift will go a long way towards creating this important resource for underserved communities on our campus.

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