Conferences
OPCSMH offers a biennial conference. The OPCSMH 6th Biennial Conference was on May 18, 2023. This year’s theme was Reimagining Campus-CommUNITY Partnerships: Breaking Down the Silos. We united students, staff, faculty, and the community for mental wellness and suicide prevention by establishing a sense of belonging and comprehensive approach to mental health and suicide prevention, including investment from the entire campus-community.
Thank you to everyone who joined us for the OPCSMH 6th Biennial Conference! Recordings of the presentations from the conference can be found on the OPCSMH YouTube channel. We look forward to seeing you all on May 15th, 2025, for the OPCSMH 7th Biennial Conference!
Conference Objectives
- Identify how colleges and universities can collaborate with the campus-community to leverage the promotion of student safety & well-being, mental health awareness and campus suicide prevention efforts
- Identify and acknowledge the cross-communal and inter-university partnerships that address and strengthen the outcome of mental health service provision for student populations
- Identify outreach opportunities to engage student-focused programming that addresses stigma and barriers to accessing mental health care.
- Provide best practices, resources, and help-seeking options that target suicide prevention for all campus-community student populations
- Recognize inclusive strategies and efforts meeting the needs of all groups within the campus-community, including first generation, BIPOC (black indigenous and people of color), students with needs for accessibility & accommodations and historically underrepresented backgrounds
Conference speakers
Keynote: From Science to Social Action: Mental Health, Stigma, and Student Empowerment
Bernice Pescosolido, PhD, Distinguished Professor of Sociology, Indiana University, Founding Director of the Indiana Consortium of Mental Health Research
Afternoon Plenary: Impact and Opportunities for Peer Support in Higher Education
Kelly Davis, MS, Associate Vice President of Peer and Youth Advocacy at Mental Health America
Rei Scott, AAS, Executive Board Member of Students, Students with Psychosis; Ohio State University
Breaking Down Silos & Building New Partnerships: Next Gen Community-University Partnerships
Gavin Luter, PhD, Adjunct Faculty, Urban and Regional Planning, UW-Madison, Clinical Professor, Educational Leadership and Policy Analysis, UW-Madison, Managing Director, UniverCity Alliance, University of Wisconsin-Madison
To see the full conference agenda, click here!
Who Should attend
Campus stakeholders at institutions of higher education, higher education administrators, behavioral health departments, community members, campus security and law enforcement; students, educators, counselors, social workers, and others working within a higher education setting are encouraged to attend.
Additional details
There are plenty of local restaurants and attractions near Quest Conference Center!
Directions to the Quest Conference Center can be found here!
View past conferences and conference materials at the OPCSMH Archives.
Payment options: Credit card or check. Registrants paying by check should use the discount code CHECK. Payment should be mailed to:
Northeast Ohio Medical University Foundation
4209 St. Rt. 44 | PO Box 95 | Rootstown, Ohio 44272
c/o OPCSMH 6th Biennial Conference
Cancellation Policy: No refunds will be given for cancellations received on or after May 12, 2023, however, substitutes are welcome to attend. NEOMED reserves the right to cancel courses. Registrants will be notified at the earliest possible date in the event of a cancellation. Tuition fees for the courses canceled by NEOMED will be refunded; however, NEOMED will not be liable for any loss, damages, or other expenses that such cancellations may cause.
