{"392751":{"#nid":"392751","#data":{"type":"news","title":"Helping Hands: Students Wanted to Serve as Peer Counselors","body":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003EStudent mental health remains top of mind for colleges and universities nationwide, including Georgia Tech. This year, a new peer counseling initiative is taking shape on campus to let students help one another as they face mental health issues.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThe peer counseling initiative is a part of Burdell\u2019s Buddies, a program through the Counseling Center that focuses on raising awareness of mental health issues and promoting the use of campus, professional, and personal resources. Applications are now open, and due April 3, for students who are interested in being trained to serve as peer counselors.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u201cWhether it\u0027s through peer counseling or a variety of campus outreach initiatives such as mental health workshops, as a member of Burdell\u0027s Buddies you\u0027re helping fellow students in need,\u201d said Sanat Moningi, a computer science major and Burdell\u2019s Buddies member.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThe idea of peer counseling is focused on students helping students, providing an additional option outside professional counseling resources. This \u201cbuddy\u201d system is intended to connect students with others who can understand the issues they are facing and have been trained to provide appropriate assistance.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EFor students serving as counselors, the initiative gives them a unique opportunity to lend a helping hand to peers.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u201cBurdell\u0027s Buddies not only gives the opportunity of helping other students in need, but also gives opportunities in crucial leadership and service roles,\u201d said Moningi.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003EThe peer counselor application is \u003Ca href=\u0022http:\/\/www.counseling.gatech.edu\/content\/462\/peer-counseling\u0022\u003Eonline\u003C\/a\u003E and is due by Friday, April 3. Students who are accepted will receive professional training from psychologists at the Georgia Tech Counseling Center that will focus on the mental health needs of college students, cultural awareness and competency, and communication skills. Training will take place this fall and students will start as peer counselors as early as next spring.\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003ELearn more about Burdell\u2019s Buddies from the \u003Ca href=\u0022http:\/\/www.counseling.gatech.edu\/content\/462\/peer-counseling\u0022\u003ECounseling Center website\u003C\/a\u003E.\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E\u003Cp\u003E\u0026nbsp;\u003C\/p\u003E","summary":null,"format":"limited_html"}],"field_subtitle":"","field_summary":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003EA new program, Burdell\u0027s Buddies, will let students provide help to each other in times of need.\u003C\/p\u003E","format":"limited_html"}],"field_summary_sentence":[{"value":"A new program, Burdell\u0027s Buddies, will let students provide help to each other in times of need."}],"uid":"27469","created_gmt":"2015-04-01 12:44:23","changed_gmt":"2016-10-08 03:17:54","author":"Kristen Bailey","boilerplate_text":"","field_publication":"","field_article_url":"","dateline":{"date":"2015-04-01T00:00:00-04:00","iso_date":"2015-04-01T00:00:00-04:00","tz":"America\/New_York"},"extras":[],"hg_media":{"392731":{"id":"392731","type":"image","title":"Burdell\u0027s Buddies","body":null,"created":"1449246332","gmt_created":"2015-12-04 16:25:32","changed":"1475895107","gmt_changed":"2016-10-08 02:51:47","alt":"Burdell\u0027s Buddies","file":{"fid":"75585","name":"burdells_buddies.png","image_path":"\/sites\/default\/files\/images\/burdells_buddies.png","image_full_path":"http:\/\/tlwarc.hg.gatech.edu\/\/sites\/default\/files\/images\/burdells_buddies.png","mime":"image\/png","size":28576,"path_740":"http:\/\/tlwarc.hg.gatech.edu\/sites\/default\/files\/styles\/740xx_scale\/public\/images\/burdells_buddies.png?itok=qNY_75aN"}}},"media_ids":["392731"],"related_links":[{"url":"http:\/\/counseling.gatech.edu\/","title":"Counseling Center"},{"url":"http:\/\/www.counseling.gatech.edu\/content\/462\/peer-counseling","title":"Burdell\u0027s Buddies"}],"groups":[{"id":"1214","name":"News Room"}],"categories":[{"id":"129","name":"Institute and Campus"}],"keywords":[{"id":"1020","name":"counseling center"},{"id":"10343","name":"mental health"},{"id":"167069","name":"student affairs"}],"core_research_areas":[],"news_room_topics":[{"id":"71871","name":"Campus and Community"}],"event_categories":[],"invited_audience":[],"affiliations":[],"classification":[],"areas_of_expertise":[],"news_and_recent_appearances":[],"phone":[],"contact":[{"value":"\u003Cp\u003E\u003Ca href=\u0022mailto:stucomm@gatech.edu\u0022\u003ENihit Tiwari\u003C\/a\u003E\u003Cbr \/\u003EInstitute Communications\u003C\/p\u003E","format":"limited_html"}],"email":[],"slides":[],"orientation":[],"userdata":""}}}