In February, Illinois State University’s Dean of Students Office officially launched its new peer-to-peer program to help address basic needs insecurity. This new program, called the Student Navigators, connects students in need to trained peers to help students find local, state, and federal resources. This new service is completely free and open to all enrolled students at ISU.
Basic needs insecurity is the lack of or inconsistent access to nutritious food, housing, mental and physical health resources, technology and transportation, physical hygiene resources, childcare, and other related needs. Basic needs insecurity cannot only put a student physically at risk but can also impact their mental health and performance or ability to stay in school.
To request assistance from the Student Navigators, a student can schedule a meeting and complete a short intake form online. From there, a Navigator will meet with the student and collaborate to develop a plan to help find resources to address the students’ need, pulling from campus, community, state, and federal resources.
Even though the Student Navigator program has just recently launched, it has been in the works behind the scenes for over a year. The Dean of Students Office offers other forms of student care, including a daily Dean on Duty to help triage concerns from students and families, case management for off-campus students, and a care team to get support to students whose academic lives are derailed by personal circumstances. The Student Navigator program complements those services and systems already in place by creating a peer-to-peer resource that can work in tandem with the student in finding solutions.
