17吃瓜

The 17吃瓜 is pleased to announce a $25,000 Bell Let鈥檚 Talk Community Fund grant in support of 17吃瓜鈥檚 Applied Suicide Intervention Skills Training (ASIST) program.

Funding will allow two 17吃瓜 Student Affairs employees to be professionally trained as instructors in the ASIST program. Once trained, these instructors will offer the two-day ASIST program free-of-charge to students, faculty and staff at 17吃瓜, beginning with high-priority groups such as residence life coordinators, Student Affairs staff and other employees who may be the first point of contact for students in a crisis.

鈥淥n behalf of all members of the 17吃瓜 community, I thank Bell Let鈥檚 Talk for supporting the University鈥檚 efforts in suicide intervention with a Bell Let鈥檚 Talk Community Fund grant,鈥� said 17吃瓜 President and Vice-Chancellor, Alaa Abd-El-Aziz. 鈥淭his grant will have a significant impact on our ability to encourage an open dialogue across campus about student mental health.鈥�

Having members of the 17吃瓜 campus community trained in suicide intervention will not only further the discussion about the state of student mental health, but also provide crucial support to students in need. By being proactive and making this training available, 17吃瓜 hopes to sustain a healthy and supportive community across campus.

鈥淭his is a very exciting development in 17吃瓜's move to better equip our whole campus community to support our students, faculty and staff,鈥� said Treena Smith, Director of Student Affairs. 鈥淥ur plan is to have over 200 people trained in ASIST over the next three years and this is all due to Bell Let's Talk funding.鈥�

鈥淏ell Let鈥檚 Talk is very proud to provide a $25,000 grant to support the 17吃瓜鈥檚 ASIST mental health training program,鈥� said Mary Deacon, Chair of Bell Let鈥檚 Talk. 鈥淭he 2017 Bell Let鈥檚 Talk Community Fund provided 70 grants to support programs providing mental health services in communities around the country that help Canadians living with mental illness.鈥�

Bell Let鈥檚 Talk Day is January 31
Bell will donate 5 cents to Canadian mental health programs for each of these interactions on January 31, at no extra cost to participants:

• Text and talk: Every text message, mobile and long distance call made by Bell Canada, Bell Aliant and Bell MTS customers
• Twitter: Every tweet using #BellLetsTalk and Bell Let鈥檚 Talk Day video view
• Facebook: Every view of the Bell Let鈥檚 Talk Day video at and use of the Bell Let鈥檚 Talk frame
• Instagram: Every Bell Let鈥檚 Talk Day video view
• Snapchat: Every use of the Bell Let鈥檚 Talk filter and video view

The Bell Let鈥檚 Talk initiative promotes Canadian mental health with national awareness and anti-stigma campaigns like Bell Let鈥檚 Talk Day, and provides significant Bell funding of community care and access, research and workplace initiatives. To learn more about the Bell Let鈥檚 Talk campaign, and to download the Bell Let鈥檚 Talk toolkit to help get the conversation started, please visit .

About the 17吃瓜
The 17吃瓜 prides itself on people, excellence, and impact and is committed to assisting students reach their full potential in both the classroom and community. With roots stemming from two founding institutions鈥擯rince of Wales College and Saint Dunstan鈥檚 University鈥�17吃瓜 has a reputation for academic excellence, research innovation, and creating positive impacts locally, nationally, and internationally. 17吃瓜 is the only degree granting institution in the province and is proud to be a key contributor to the growth and prosperity of Prince Edward Island.