The first-ever Wellness Week at Chaminade University ended Friday with positive reviews from the campus community and calls for another one next year.
Organized as a way to help students reduce stress and recharge halfway through the Fall Semester, Wellness Week featured dozens of campus events organized by colleges and departments.
Instructors also organized mini wellness-themed activities with their classes, taking a break from regular lectures and instruction.
Cheryl Edelson, Ph.D., co-Dean of the College of Arts & Sciences, said she heard very positive things about Wellness Week from students attending the wellness sessions. Her college organized a handful of events, including a “sound bath” in Loo Theatre, a lunch at the Conference Center featuring games and a scavenger hunt, and movie screenings.
“They appreciate the break,” Edelson said, sharing the reactions she’s been receiving from students.
“We were prepping for the midterm exam but also talking about their papers,” she added. “And so, for them, a slower pace, I think, is giving them a little bit of time to catch a breath. The idea is to basically help them kind of recharge.”
The week kicked off with guided meditation sessions at the Mystical Rose Oratory and Zuberano Lawn. Yoga lessons were on offer, along with cooking demonstrations, including lessons on making the perfect onigiri and Spam musubis hosted by Aramark Dining Services.
Carlson Fitness Center guided students on how to design suitable workouts depending on their fitness goals.
Meanwhile, the campus chapter of the Psi Chi honor society of psychology majors organized the “Plant, Paint, and Pause” event on Wednesday. The hour-long gathering was held “to support student wellness by creating an intentional moment to slow down during the semester,” Psi Chi explained.
Pizza was also offered at that special Psi Chi event.
Other Wellness Week activities were more educational in nature. “We tried to put together some arts and humanities-related and science-related activities throughout the week,” Edelson explained.
Wellness Week also saw the return of therapy dogs to Chaminade University. Organized by Campus Ministry, students were invited to the “Puppy Love” therapy dog session held over the Thursday lunch hour, an opportunity to unwind with the official therapy dogs while enjoying rock painting.
Shannon Sheehy, a junior Sports and Event Management major, said she and her friends really appreciated the week-long opportunity to unwind.
“I think it’s been very beneficial,” Sheehy said. “I play volleyball here, so I feel like for our team, it’s been nice to get out and see puppies and have time to take care of ourselves and put the students first.”
Sheehy admitted that a busy first half of the semester had her feeling a bit overwhelmed earlier, but Wellness Week was a good fix for that. “It’s been pretty stressful, but after this week, I feel that it was a good reset to have,” she said.
Mahina, a freshman nursing student, said she and her fellow students were enjoying Wellness Week but that some students suggested a simple break from classes might have been better.
“I feel like it’s going pretty well,” she said. “But from what I’ve heard, from both my classmates and also just being around, some students preferred to just have a fall break.”
Still, Mahina said Chaminade students were happy with the schedule of activities and of the opportunity to pause mid-semester. “The events have been very well received from what I have seen,” she said. “A lot of people had fun at the events.”
Wellness Week emphasized students’ academic wellness.
Organizers hoped that the mid-semester pause would help students who may be struggling to have a chance to take a break and get the help and attention they needed. With the pause in regular course instruction, faculty members were afforded chances to reconnect with their students and lend assistance to anyone who may need additional support.
Edelson said Chaminade’s leadership plans to poll students afterwards to see what worked well, what didn’t, and how Wellness Week may be operated differently should it return in Fall 2027. She said the concept of a Wellness Week is relatively new but starting to spread rapidly at college campuses across the United States.
“It’ll be interesting to see the data at the end of it,” she said. “This is really a time of the semester where we can help students kind of turn things around if they need to, or if they’re doing great, they can continue that way and still get a breath,” Edelson added.
Sheehy said Chaminade should definitely consider holding another Wellness Week next year.
“I think it’s very beneficial for everyone.”