MCCC’s Student Support and Referral Team

 

Student Support and Referral Team

(SSRT)

Connecting Students

 with

College and Community Resources

 

Montgomery County Community College is a place where the future is created. It is a place where desire and knowledge are combined to yield opportunity. The College is a reflection and a response to the needs and aspirations of those who live, work, and conduct business in Montgomery County and beyond.  Most importantly, the College is dedicated to fostering the growth and success of all we serve.

The College recognizes that students face many challenges in and out of the classroom that may affect their academic success.

Student Support & Referral Team can connect you with helping professionals for issues related to:

Stress Anxiety Anger Emotional Distress Depression Eating Disorders Abusive relationships Suicidal Thoughts

 

This is a FREE CONFIDENTIAL referral service available to current students of the College.

How to Contact SSRT:

 

• Students are encouraged to self refer by: 

 

• Visiting Student Success Center during normal business hours  

 

• Sending email to SSRT at StudentReferral@mc3.edu 
  • When sending an email – student should include a brief description of situation, use only his or her College ID #, and include a valid phone number for contact by a member of the SSRT.  

 

• Emails received after normal business hours or when the College is closed will be responded to on the next business day or when the College reopens.

 

v  SSRT will contact student to discuss situation and determine course of action including, if needed, referral to appropriate local agencies, organizations and resources.

• Calling Student Success Center during normal business hours to talk to a member of the SSRT or an available counselor in the Student Success Center and/or arrange for an appointment. 
•  

A member of SSRT will maintain follow up with student, if needed, to assist student in his/her efforts to utilize appropriate resources and support student’s academic success.

STUDENT SUPPORT & REFERRAL TEAM includes the following members:

• Assistant Vice President for Student Affairs – Pottstown Campus
• Dean of Student Affairs – Blue Bell Campus
• Counselors from each campus
• Faculty members from each campus
• Director of Campus Safety
• Director and Coordinator of Services for Students with Disabilities
• Director of Equity  and Diversity Initiatives
• Director of First Year Initiatives
• Director of Health and Wellness Initiatives

 

This is not a hotline service.

If you are having an emergency or crisis situation,

dial 9-1-1 to get immediate assistance to your location.

Central Campus                                     West Campus

Student Success Center                        Student Success Center

College Hall                                            South Hall 151

215-641-6577                                         610-718-1906

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SGA Reacts to Rutgers Student Suicide

By Jocelyn Moye, Staff  Writer

Many at Montgomery County Community College say the suicide of a Rutgers University freshman underscores the need to end harassment and hatred of those who are lesbian, gay, bi-sexual and transgender.
Tyler Clementi jumped off the George Washington Bridge Sept. 22 after learning his roommate and another student secretly streamed live video of Clementi’s sexual encounter with another man on the Internet, authorities say.
Rutgers freshmen Dharun Ravi and Molly Wei have been charged with invasion of privacy.
The suicide not only called attention to harassment of gay youth nationwide but also spurred lawmakers in New Jersey to demand tougher anti-bullying and cyber-bullying laws. The proposed bipartisan Anti-Bullying Bill of Rights would be one of the toughest anti-bullying laws in the nation, reports UPI and The Star-Ledger newspaper in Newark, N.J.
At Montgomery County Community College, reaction to the tragedy formed the subject of many e-mails from faculty. In-boxes were flooded with replies as staff tried to come to grips with the student’s death. Many offered to turn the tragedy into a way to teach about respect and privacy.
The death also speaks to the need to bring back a support group for the community college’s LGBT community.
The Gay-Straight Alliance is inactive at the present time because of a lack of leadership, said its former adviser, Douglas Vore, the college’s assistant director of financial aid.
“Student clubs need to act on their own,” Vore said.
The Gay Straight Alliance was a product of the campus Safe Spaces program, which was started six years ago by Dr. Sophia Demasi.
Studies state that LGBT students face much adversity on college campuses, Demasi said, adding that she aimed to support LGBT students as well as give them a voice.
Faculty members who chose to participate in Safe Spaces became a campus network of advocates for LGBT students, she said, noting that it takes a minimum of five students to show a need for such a club.
“Some years, we have those leaders, and other years we don’t,” Dr. Demasi says of the club’s recent inactivity. She says that clubs on commuter campuses tend to go through cycles of activity and dormancy.
Vore believes that the Safe Spaces program needs to start up again.
Student Government Association President Antonio Marrero doesn’t want to wait any longer to deliver the “no hate” message.
“A student was targeted and his human right to privacy was shattered,” says Marrero in reference to Clementi’s death. Marrero added that his position as student body president makes him feel responsible for the safety of the 20,000 students on campus.
He says the SGA (Student Government Association) is raising awareness of bullying and trying to forge a stronger GSA. He says SGA want to educate the student body about acceptance and tolerance of differences.
Marrero said his campaign extends beyond sexual orientation and into individuality. He pointed to celebration of Spirit Day on Oct. 20, a day called by the Gay and Lesbian Alliance Against Defamation to call attention not only to Clementi but five other gay teens who committed suicide because they were bullied for being gay.
An anti-harassment petition signed by students is just the beginning, Marrero says, adding that SGA is proposing that the school’s harassment policy be reviewed. It is possible that the policy may need to change with new technological avenues for harassment, he said.
“As gadgets become smaller and easier to conceal, it becomes easier for the general population to conduct means of espionage,” says Marrero. “All we can do as a student body is raise awareness on this matter and help to set punitive measures for civil violations that deter the illicit practices.”
Dr. Demasi hopes to see the SGA’s movement last: “In the end, more continuous and proactive campus awareness and discussion will be more useful for ensuring a climate of acceptance and inclusion of sexual and gender difference at Montgomery County Community College.”
Students say Clementi’s suicide said a lot about the misuse and abuse of technology.
“American kids are too immature,” says Dina Meltzer, an international business and culture student. “They don’t consider the affect that their actions have on other people.”
Heather Spangenberg, a restaurant management student, and Meltzer agree that Ravi and Wei should serve time in prison.
“The kids who did it should get more of a punishment than getting kicked out of school,” Spangenberg said. She and many other students at Montgomery County Community College agree the Rutgers incident is ghastly.
“It’s a big deal with technology and Facebook ruining someone’s image,” she says.
Christina Videva, a German professor, feels that society isn’t as tolerant as it could be. She says that the situation would not have happened in Maine, where she used to live.
“It’s very sad that people should feel oppressed that way,” says Professor Videva, referring to Clementi. “It’s a huge threat – this whole exposure through social networks.”

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