At the Center for Counseling & Student Development, we mourn the tragic murder of Walter Wallace Jr., a husband, father, son, Black man and member of the Philadelphia community. His family announced that he was battling a mental illness and experiencing a mental health crisis. They called for help, not the police who shot and killed him. More training and resources—especially around de-escalation techniques and non-lethal means of restraint—for those working with and responding to people experiencing a mental health crisis are greatly needed.

As a center, we unequivocally condemn acts of racism and white supremacy and stand in support of the ongoing protests calling for justice and accountability. We believe Black Lives Matter and we recognize the impact Mr. Wallace’s murder has on the Black community and on our Black and brown students on campus.

If you find that you need individual support in processing your experience, or would just like to speak with a counselor, contact us at 302-831-2141.

For those Black identified students who need a place of support, we have the Black Identified Student Support Group that meets via Zoom on Tuesdays from 3 to 4:30 pm. It is facilitated by Dr. Ghynecee Temple and Dr. Jennifer Major. If you would like to join, please see the flyer for RSVP information.

During Students of Color Virtual Drop-In Hours, students of color can meet with staff of color without going through our triage process. To access these appointments, call our main number and request one of these meetings. You will be offered the first available open time. Current hours are Tuesdays at 1 p.m., Wednesday at 11 a.m. and 1 p.m. and Fridays at 11 a.m. If these times do not work with your schedule, please let our front desk staff know you would like to meet with a counselor of color and we will work with you to have you meet with one of them.

The UDHelpline is available 24/7/365 for phone support at 302-831-1001. People of color can also text STEVE to 741741 for a crisis counselor. We would also like to provide some helpful links.

Campaign Zero is a project of the non-profit 501(c)(3) organization, “We The Protesters,” that encourages policymakers to focus on solutions with the strongest evidence of effectiveness at reducing police violence.

Since 2014, The Marshall Project has been curating some of the best criminal justice reporting from around the web.