SGA passes act, advocating mental support for students

Danette Heredia | Staff Writer

As the Israeli-Palestinian conflict persists and students grow more anxious by the day, student government passes the “Student Support and Mental Wellness Act” (S.R. 04 023) with an overwhelming majority vote from senate. 

“Students Support and Mental Wellness Act” encourages students affected to seek support through CAPS and ensures more efforts in promoting mental health services available to FIU students through social media, like Instagram and Twitter. 

Counseling and Psychological Services is a mental health service offered free for students who are struggling to cope with emotions like depression, stress, and anxiety, aimed to improve emotional well-being, livelihood, and academic success. 

With the student government’s previous attempts to condemn the war between Palestine and Israel ultimately failing, this new resolution’s approach focuses on students and their mental health during times of emotional distress.  

The sponsors expressed their commitment to taking a humanitarian perspective to call for a peaceful resolution between the two states.

Although CAPS could not directly co-sponsor S.R. 04 23, SGA holds the right to promote their services to students, says Housing Senator Alexander Stone, a sponsor of the resolution, when asked about CAPS involvement. 

More recently, there have been growing tensions between Palestinian and Israeli students at FIU as conflict unfolds in the Middle East. 

After reaching out to Senator Stone it was confirmed that these tensions were not an inspiration to create the “Student Support and Mental Wellness Act”, but rather a resolution designed for all students caught between the tragedies of Israel and Palestine. 

“There are students that go here that are affected by this issue. Whether they have family members or friends or general sympathies with the people who have been affected in this conflict, it’s important for students to know the resources available to them,” said Senator Stone.