Pennsylvania’s Slippery Rock University offers students a myriad of resources to help them succeed that are delivered by faculty and staff, but sometimes students just need a boost from one of their own. They might want to talk through a problem they’re dealing with outside of the classroom, they may need help making friends, or they just prefer advice from another student. That’s where Boost Peer Educators like Churchville’s Emma Flaherty come in.
Boost is a group of certified peer educators from the SRU Student Support Office that focuses on students’ personal, social, and emotional well-being and development. They present programs, host events, and share helpful strategies through social media.
The group was formed five years ago, but its presence on campus is even more critical for SRU students who need help adjusting or readjusting to college life after so many were isolated behind a computer screen or continue to experience stress during the pandemic.
“We all know that we have resources available on campus, but it feels so much easier to talk to your peers to ask for advice on handling a situation or just to say, ‘Hey, I’m really struggling with this (issue),’” said Flaherty, a senior music therapy major. “Especially now, it’s really important for everyone to make sure they take time to reacclimate to the rest of the world after doing things they couldn’t do before. It can be harder to give yourself a break because people are going to be pushing themselves past their limits.”
Flaherty is one of eight Boost Peer Educators this semester, who come from a variety of majors and backgrounds. The BPEs are trained and certified through NASPA, which is the National Association for Student Affairs Professionals. They are paid to develop programming, either for specific campus groups, such as Residence Life or student organizations, or host their own programs that are open for anyone on campus to attend.
A recent example of a Boost program was “Re-Boost Your Brain,” which addressed concerns about returning to in-person activities, arriving on campus for the first time despite being an SRU student for more than a year, and navigating the fall semester. Flaherty led the program along with Leah Meszaros, a junior psychology major from Farmdale, Ohio.
“We talked about getting back to being a real person and not just someone using a computer or being (a square in a gallery) on Zoom,” Meszaros said. “You almost have to rewire your brain.”
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