The Connection

Issue date: 10/26/06 Section: Opinion

Media Credit: Cristie Pirote

Home is a place where you should feel comfortable and safe. For a good amount of college students, their university dorm is what they call home.

But many universities are formulating a policy preventing suicidal students from continuing to live in dorms.

An estimated 1,100 college students commit suicide a year, according to an article on CBSNews.com.

Policies have been created at many colleges to ban students from living in dorms if they attempt or talk about committing suicide.

A college student from New York, swallowed handfuls of Tylenol then called 911 and saved her life, was evicted from her dorm room.

A close friend of mine was similarly threatened with expulsion from his Southern California college dorm after attempting suicide.

"You are telling an obviously severely depressed person that he can't live in his home anymore and you think that you are helping him? You think that he is going to become less depressed?"

Tracy Schario, a spokeswoman from the George Washington University told CBS News the reason behind the banning of students from dorms is to give them a break from university life and encourage them to get help.

I highly doubt this. Are these colleges banning their students from dorms for the student's well-being or to prevent legal liability?

College officials can say they have their student's best interest in mind, but it's difficult to believe.

All of a sudden, college officials seem to be really concerned about their students' health and are becoming more aggressive to get these suicidal students home and out of their dormitories.

If anything, these rules will further prevent students from seeking help because they will be too afraid to do so.

In a survey by the American College Health association, 40 percent of students reported it was difficult to function because they were so depressed.

Thoughts of suicide come from a severely depressed person.

A depressed individual has just as much of a medical condition as a person with Attention Deficit Disorder or cancer.

Why aren't the college officials worried about the student with cancer or ADD? Why don't the college officials encourage them to go home as well?

Because a student with cancer doesn't have "legal liability" written on their forehead like the student down the hall who cuts his wrists.

School dorms and universities, should form support groups for students with suicidal tendencies instead of kicking these students to the curb and discouraging them from seeking help.

As a student getting ready to transfer, it's extremely uncomforting to know the universities are this insensitive.

I don't suffer from depression and I won't ever attempt suicide, but what's next?

What's going to stop the dorm from disowning other students with different disorders that may be disruptive?

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