Ferris State University has launched a 24/7 mental health crisis support line to give students immediate access to licensed mental health professionals, no matter the hour.
The new hotline, which is available year-round, is free to all enrolled students and aims to fill the gap in after-hours support.
The Personal Counseling Center has never previously offered a service like this on campus. Funding became available this summer, allowing the university to act quickly and install the service.
Students who are struggling with a mental health crisis can call (231) 591-HELP, which is 4357, to be connected. When students use the line, they can expect to be connected with a trained professional within 30 seconds of placing the call.
The university partnered with a national crisis support provider called Protocol to staff and manage the hotline. The company specializes in around-the-clock mental health services and works specifically with colleges to offer campus-informed crisis support.
Housing staff and other university officials had long pushed for more support, especially during nights and weekends.
Director of Counseling and Anti-Violence Prevention Programming Andy Slater oversees the university’s mental health services and led the rollout of the new 24/7 crisis support line.
“We were able to secure some funding over the summer for mental health initiatives, and the idea of a crisis line came up again,” Slater said. “It’s something we’d talked about before, but cost was always a barrier. This year, with the funding in place we decided it was time to move forward and make it happen.”
Until now, students had few options for immediate mental health support after business hours. While national services like 988 are available, they aren’t specific to Ferris or its campus systems.
Slater explained how the system works and how all the calls are reported back to the PCC so further support can be given if needed.
“They’ll do a safety assessment, talk through the situation, and then determine next steps,” Slater said. “That might mean creating a safety plan or, in more serious cases recommending emergency care. This service is designed specifically with Ferris students in mind. The counselors on the other end know about our campus, our support systems and where to refer students locally.”
If the student shares their name during the call a report is sent to Ferris’ Personal Counseling Center the next day, allowing campus staff to follow up and offer additional support.
“We’re not going to force students to respond,” Slater said. “But chances are that one phone call didn’t fix everything. We want to connect them to counseling, the care team, or other resources like our food pantry depending on what they’re going through.”
Students on campus expressed similar sentiments when learning about the crisis center, specifically bringing up how this may be their first time away from loved ones and family.
Criminal justice sophomore Shakyla Willis believes that the hotline will prove to help students who may be experiencing a mental health crisis, especially those who may feel like they are alone or have no one around.
“A lot of students are going through stuff even if they have people at home,” Willis said. “They are all the way at college so oftentimes they might not say anything or stick to themselves.”
Willis mentioned the importance of students being able to feel like they can get out and enjoy themselves despite dealing with the pressures of school.
Nuclear medicine freshman Lindsey Wierenga also had not heard of the new resource but expressed relief that students who are struggling can have that support at any time of day.
“It’s good to have a resource like that, that’s very specific,” Wierenga said. “People can easily find it and use it when they’re not around their normal support structure.”
Wierenga also advised students to reach out to people because someone on campus can be going through something similar and is likely willing to help.
Counseling services on campus are free Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. for all students who are interested in starting sessions with a licensed clinician.