Learn How to Support Grieving College Students and Emerging Adults

WASHINGTON, August 4—Hospice Foundation of America (HFA) soon launches its new 2017-18 webinar series with Supporting Bereaved College Students and Emerging Adults.  Live on September 19 at 12 p.m. ET, webinar presenters Heather L. Servaty-Seib, PhD, HSPP, and Kenneth J. Doka, PhD, MDiv will discuss and outline effective support strategies for people at this important and often tumultuous age.
 
Population data show that young adults, those aged 18 to 25, make up more than 10 percent of the U.S. population. During this time, emerging adults face unique challenges, including increased academic and social stressors, and an uncharacteristically high level of uncertainty for the future. Coping with grief and loss, often for the first time, can add a feeling of isolation as they make this important transition—socially, financially, and mentally—from youth to independent adult.
 
Drs. Servaty-Seib and Doka are nationally recognized for their work on death and loss, particularly regarding how distinct populations experience grief. Dr. Servaty-Seib is a Professor of Counseling Psychology in the Educational Studies Department of the College of Education at the Purdue University Honors College, where she is also a Dean’s Fellow for Analytical Assessment. Her most recent scholarship has focused on bereaved college students, writing and editing volumes of narratives and empirical journal articles on the subject, as well as the books We Get It: Voices of Grieving College Students and Young Adults and Assisting Bereaved College Students: New Directions for Student Services Dr. Doka, also a prolific author and editor, is a Professor of Gerontology at The Graduate School of the College of New Rochelle (NY) and is Senior Consultant to HFA. His research has focused on the individuality of grief and disenfranchised grief.  
 
Research suggests that 22 to 30 percent of college students have experienced the death of a family member or friend within the past year, yet support is not always available through student or community health services. Hospice bereavement staff, who can be an important resource, are not always familiar with the five key characteristics of emerging adulthood. These characteristics inform college students’ and young adults personal grief narratives and the specific themes that surround them. During the webinar, Drs. Servaty-Seib and Doka will convey successful strategies to bridge the gap and offer tools for clinical work with young adults and students in both individual and group settings.
 
Attendees have 30 days to view the program and obtain CEs credits after the live air date or after the date of purchase—a change from HFA’s previous webinar policy. HFA members receive a 25 percent discount, and CE credits (1.5 hours) are available for $9 each from a wide variety of professional boards. For more information please contact HFA at info@hospicefoundation.org or call HFA at 202-457-5811.