The San Diego City College Mental Health Center is offering counseling spaces for students and faculty who need support processing the escalating conflict in Gaza and Israel.

As the violence in the region intensifies, Mental Health Center Coordinator Leslie Easton identified the need to provide coping support and confidential counseling resources for students affected by the war.

“Having a reaction is normal and getting help is important,” said Easton, who is also a counselor at the center. “You don’t have to do it alone and actually getting help is smart.”

The Mental Health Center offers confidential, in-person, or teletherapy appointments for students.

Vice President of Student Services Marciano Perez, Jr. made the connection that students who are worried about current events and distracted by what is in the news can find it difficult to succeed in their studies. 

Perez said he wanted to align City’s values with how it supported students in the current atmosphere.

“We’ve always talked about, ‘you belong here’ … and these things that are happening are things that affect people’s feelings of belongingness and feelings of safety,” Perez said.

“If you are a student, or a faculty (member), if you’re a classified professional who is impacted in any way by the things that are happening in our world, we have resources available to help process what that looks like.”

City College also offers confidential face-to-face counseling sessions through the Employee Assistance Plan for employees and their households affected by these events. Appointments can be made by calling (888) 625-4809 or visiting liveandworkwell.com with access code, VEBA.