Authors over the last two decades have discussed the myriad of challenges present in managing college students with severe mental health disorders. During the same time period, Marsha Linehan developed dialectical behavior therapy (DBT) as an empirically sound intervention for individuals with suicidal and self-injurious behaviors and this treatment grew to be an evidence-based practice for a range of challenging clinical issues. I argue that one solution to continued increases in college students who present for treatment to their college counseling centers with difficult-to-treat mental health issues, including but not limited to, borderline personality disorder (BPD), is to implement DBT programs on college campuses. As such, the purpose of this dissertation is to address both practical and theoretical issues in the implementation of DBT in college counseling centers. In chapter two, I begin by presenting an overview of DBT as a comprehensive treatment model and a review of the research to date related to DBT in college counseling centers. In chapter three, I offer a detailed account of the program development and implementation process of the DBT program housed in the college counseling center at Florida Gulf Coast University. In chapter four, I present an investigation of current trends and barriers to implementation of DBT in college counseling centers. Finally, in chapter five, I present a qualitative inquiry of the experience of BPD as told by individuals who have been successfully treated with DBT. I argue that understanding client experiences and behaviors in context is critically important if one is to be able to respond empathically and compassionately. In essence, these chapters represent my attempt to synthesize two areas that I believe are required for successful implementation of DBT programs that provide good quality care: 1) Navigating the complexities of implementing DBT in college counseling centers as practice setting and 2) Appropriate management for clinician biases and tendencies to stigmatize BPD clients, which interferes with their ability to provide care that is both effective and compassionate.

This study aims to evaluate the effectiveness of an applied mental health course in a university setting in reducing distress and symptoms of depression and increasing levels of psychological flexibility. As university psychological services are unable to meet the need of their students, other methods of treatment must be explored. Participants in the study are comprised of those who chose to enroll in a student development course aimed at increasing psychological flexibility and introducing basic psychoeducation as well as various university students who elected to participate. Depressive symptoms and psychological flexibility were measured pre-, mid-, and twice post-test in both the experimental and control groups. Split-plot Analysis of Variance and Covariance were conducted to explore outcomes. Results suggest that the psychoeducational course effectively reduces symptoms of depression and levels of psychological flexibility were increased for participants within the course. However, levels of distress were not significantly affected by the course. Further research to increase generalizability and affirm results is necessary.

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In the spring of 2020, the COVID-19 pandemic mandated closures of thousands of schools across the United States. Students dependent upon the support, guidance, and community of their schools became disconnected from these resources while encountering the challenges created by the COVID-19 pandemic. This case study represents a time capsule of the school community of one Los Angeles County public middle school from March 16 to May 28, 2020. Semi-structured interviews of school staff and parents grounded the study’s analysis. Public documents and participant researcher protocol responses collaborated the participants’ narratives. Results provide a snapshot of the school community before emergency mandated COVID-19 closure, participants’ recollections of the school community during the closure, and their reflections and reactions to the closures. Data analysis utilized a conceptual framework developed to capture e-school community access and engagement. Outcomes from this study illustrate the need for additional supports for student mental health, investment in universal access to reliable internet service, and the importance of physical school outreach during times of crisis.

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Climate-anxiety is a growing mental health issue among the public and particularly among students in sustainability-related studies in Higher Education Institutions (HEI). As education on climate change in HEI overly relies on cognitive learning, students are not able to address their emotions and potential worries about climate change adequately. The research field of climate-anxiety has emerged after 2007 and relates to other mental health responses to environmental destruction such as eco-anxiety. This study examines whether climate-anxiety affects students within HEI and what coping strategies are used by them. The aim is to suggest approaches for HEI and educational tourism providers to better address climate-anxiety. Specifically, it investigates whether non-formal actors like ecovillages can help students to cope with climate-anxiety. Ecovillages are increasingly recognising their role in Education for Sustainable Development (ESD) and helping students with climate-anxiety could balance the shortcomings of HEI. Five case studies of ecovillages were included to determine the potential of educational tourism in reducing climate-anxiety. Even though the study found that short-term study visits were not helpful for students climate-anxiety, it can be assumed that students could gain hands-on coping techniques from more extended stays at ecovillages. Particularly the ecovillages learning environment and pedagogy are beneficial for coping with climate-anxiety. It is suggested that HEI should initiate cooperations with local ecovillages to improve climate-anxiety among students, as it was found that lecturers and Student Mental Health Services (SMHS) in HEI in Sweden do not sufficiently address climate-anxiety.