Crisis Assessment Response and Education (CARE) Team
Call 478-445-7475 (478-445-RISK) or fill out this form to make report a concern to the CARE Team
Georgia College CARE Team offers support and assistance to anyone at GC who is concerned about an individual on campus. These concerns might be troubling behavior or potential threat to themselves or others. The individual may be a student, employee or visitor. The phone line is answered 24 hours per day, 7 days per week. You may also fill out this form to report a concern to the CARE Team
Cornell University has developed a very helpful set of indicators of student distress that you may wish to use in evaluating behavior that you feel may qualify as disturbed or disturbing. Please note that the presence of any single indicator from the list does not necessarily indicate a high level of concern, but an apparent combination of several may provide you guidance in deciding whether to bring an individual to the attention of the CARE Team at 478-445-7475 (478-445-RISK)
Indicators of Student Distress Excerpted from Cornell University’s Recognizing and Responding to Students in Distress — Faculty Handbook
Academic Indicators:
- Repeated absences from class, section, or lab
- Missed assignments, exams, or appointments
- Deterioration in quality or quantity of work
- Extreme disorganization or erratic performance
- Written or artistic expression of unusual violence, morbidity, social isolation, despair, or confusion; essays or papers that focus on suicide or death
- Continual seeking of special provisions (extensions on papers, make-up exams)
- Patterns of perfectionism: e.g., can’t accept themselves if they don’t get an A+
- Overblown or disproportionate response to grades or other evaluations
Behavioral and Emotional Indicators:
- Direct statements indicating distress, family problems, or loss
- Angry or hostile outbursts, yelling, or aggressive comments
- More withdrawn or more animated than usual
- Expressions of hopelessness or worthlessness; crying or tearfulness
- Expressions of severe anxiety or irritability
- Excessively demanding or dependent behavior
- Lack of response to outreach from course staff
- Shakiness, tremors, fidgeting, or pacing
Physical Indicators:
- Deterioration in physical appearance or personal hygiene
- Excessive fatigue, exhaustion; falling asleep in class repeatedly
- Visible changes in weight; statements about change in appetite or sleep
- Noticeable cuts, bruises, or burns • Frequent or chronic illness
- Disorganized speech, rapid or slurred speech, confusion
- Unusual inability to make eye contact
- Coming to class bleary-eyed or smelling of alcohol
Other Factors:
- Concern about a student by his/her peers or teaching assistant
- A hunch or gut-level reaction that something is wrong
The CARE Team has developed a list of resources and a guide that may be useful when dealing with a person in distress. If you would like hard copies of this resource, or training for your department or group in how to assist people in distress, contact Counseling Services at 478 445 5331.
