Students may struggle with coursework for many reasons, including needing but not receiving appropriate disability accommodations, but also including balancing employment and school, balancing parenthood and school, having concerns about access to basic needs like housing and food, and navigating personal emergencies.
If you have concerns about a student’s personal or academic well-being, it can be helpful to submit a Care Report to the Center for Support and Intervention, so that a Case Manager can offer direct assistance to the student.
If you are concerned about a student’s performance in your class, asking the student to meet with you to discuss their experience in your class can allow you to better understand the types of resources that may be appropriate for the student to connect with. Rather than asking the student to meet with you so you can share information about DSP, you can ask the student to meet with you to discuss how they are doing in your class and to see if there are any campus resources that they are currently not connected to that could support their success and well-being.
It can be helpful to include DSP as one of a number of resources that are shared with students, which allows students to decide whether they disclose a disability identity to their instructor. UC Berkeley has a wide array of programming and offices that support students’ success and well-being. Instructors are encouraged to visit campus student services offices and tabling events and to learn more about these resources and to pick up flyers and materials that can then be displayed in their own offices. Having a bulletin board or table in your office that has information about campus services can allow students to ask questions about services that are interesting and meaningful to them, without putting students on the spot and leading them to feel required to disclose personal information that they would prefer to keep private.
In addition to having information available in your office, sharing links to campus resources in your syllabus, on your course website, and in your email signature is also recommended. Pages such as the Academic Accommodations Hub and the Support Portal collate information and resources by topic for easy navigation.