A Network for Global Student Health Now at AUC

By: Nada AlNaggar

@NadaWahba10

The AUC community has just become a part of a worldwide online portal called Student Health 101 (SH101), which caters to the well-being of students around the world.

SH101 is an international website that is also available as a mobile application. The introduction of SH101 to AUC was announced by Dean of Students George Marquis through an email sent to all AUC students on February 14.

The idea to launch the application was sparked by Marquis when a company that has previously launched a similar website in many universities in the United States approached him with the pitch.

SH101’s local launch was organized under the auspices of the Office of the Dean of Students in collaboration with the office’s different units, such as the Center for Student Well-Being.

The application offers various categories focused on the emotional and physical well-being of students, and provides advice on adopting a healthier lifestyle.

The application gives each student the option of choosing the university they belong to, gives them access to localized content and the option to subscribe to content from around the world.

The university resources option found on the application and the website are customized to fit the resources of AUC, such as emergency contacts on campus.

“We know from research that there is an association between how a student feels and how they perform,” Marquis told The Caravan.

Marquis also said that AUC students can apply to be part of the Student Advisory Board and contribute to SH101’s content with a click of a button. Being part of the Student Advisory Board also gives students access to voice their opinions on topics they think are important.

“It is a holistic place where students can go and get all the information they need about their well-being,” Aisha Khayrat, the officer responsible for communications and data management in the Office of the Dean of Students explained.

Khayrat said that SH101 is also available on social media platforms and that students can directly voice their opinion about the content they receive by using the feedback mechanism found at the end of every article.

The Office of the Dean of Students is waiting for feedback from students, which will help them choose which content to subscribe to in order to match student preferences.

This will also help determine which direction they are going to take to meet the students’ expectations and needs, rather than subscribing to content the students may not find interesting or relatable. 

“The Office of the Dean of Students noticed that the students were coming to us but we were not going to them. We decided this year that we would spend a lot of time and effort on reaching students who hadn’t thought about coming to us,” Marquis stated.

Toka Al Hamzawey, a graphic design and integrated marketing communications (IMC) junior, thought that the application offered a wide variety of topics that she wouldn’t actively search for herself, such as things related to sleep and metabolism.

“What grabbed my attention the most was the wide range of categories for articles. You’re sure that there’s something for almost everything. For example, there was an article about how metabolism could be affected by your sleep,” she said.

Some students are concerned about SH101 articles written by non-Egyptians and whether the content would be relevant to Egyptian students.

Khayrat says these concerns were taken into consideration before launching SH101 at AUC.

“Some thought the articles written from a non-Egyptian point of view can give students a wider perspective of how things are with students all around the world,” she said.

She added that it is okay if there are different perspectives on the provided content, and that the articles don’t have to be written from an Egyptian point of view or even an AUCian’s point of view to be relevant.

Marquis stressed that SH101 articles are written by experts from around the world.

The application will be reconfigured when the students themselves volunteer to contribute to the application’s development,  and provide feedback that will influence the coming editions of the website.