EDWARDSVILLE - Frank Warren, creator of the popular PostSecret blog, will speak in Southern Illinois University Edwardsville’s Meridian Ballroom at 7 p.m. Wednesday, Sept. 12 as a culmination of PostSecretU, the suicide prevention conference being held on campus.
In an effort to create an open and safe forum for students to express secrets, regrets, fears, desires, talents, hidden acts of kindness or confessions, Active Minds and iCARE at Southern Illinois University Edwardsville have sponsored PostSecretU since August 20. The conference will conclude with Warren’s presentation.
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The PostSecretU program serves as a gateway to opening the conversation about many of the hopes, dreams, fears, problems and stresses that students are experiencing, but might not feel comfortable discussing.
“PostSecretU brings people together and allows those who have felt isolated or alone to connect to a larger group,” says Warren. “It starts a conversation that brings people together.”
PostSecretU supports Active Minds’ ongoing efforts to change the perception and conversation about mental health and wellness on college campuses and in the greater community. Many individuals carry secrets that they are too embarrassed or ashamed to admit. All too often, those secrets relate to or impact mental health. PostSecretU aims to break down the barriers by creating a safe, comfortable and anonymous space to share secrets.
Active Minds and iCare collected secrets between Aug. 20 and Sept. 5 at SIUE Counseling and Health Services. A display of secrets will open on Sept. 12 in the Meridian Ballroom. With all PostSecretU materials and events, Active Minds and iCARE at SIUE will be distributing information about local mental health resources to encourage everyone to follow-up and speak to someone about their secret, if needed. The program intends to help create a community of support where one’s peers feel as if their thoughts, feelings, and fears matter, and can be shared more freely.
About Active Minds
Active Minds is a national nonprofit organization and the leading voice in college student mental health. Active Minds supports a rapidly growing network of hundreds of student-run chapters on campuses across North America, like Active Minds at SIUE. All chapters work toward one goal: to create a campus culture where it is okay to speak openly about mental health and seek help. Headquartered in Washington, D.C., Active Minds empowers students to change the conversation about mental health one campus at a time. Learn more at activeminds.org. Learn more about Active Minds at SIUE at: siue.campuslabs.com/engage/organization/actminds.
About iCARE
The SIUE Initiative to Create Awareness, Recognition and Education (iCARE) on suicide prevention aims to significantly impact student, faculty and staff recognition of risks for and behaviors of a student contemplating suicide. This is accomplished by a) direct involvement of student organizations and leadership in developing outreach strategies, b) identification and deployment of best available training and assessment methods, c) collaboration with community partners on programming decisions, policies, and management plans, and d) outcomes assessment to guide future resources and focus.
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