The fourth page of the guidebook given to each University of Minnesota freshman looks like a worksheet. At orientation, before flipping through the sections about campus life, new students were asked to list their worries and stressors and jot down some self-care options such as going for a walk or writing in a mindfulness journal.
The page is a recent addition to the handbook on the Twin Cities campus and an example of the considerations and adjustments that leaders at colleges and universities across the state are making for the class of 2026 — a cohort who saw much of their high school experience marred by the pandemic.
"We are very aware that this class is different," said Lizette Rebolledo, director of orientation and transition experiences at the U. "The last two years were like nothing that they or any of us have experienced. It's important to acknowledge that it hasn't been easy for these students."
The pandemic shut down in-person classes and hindered face-to-face socializing when most incoming college freshmen were just high school sophomores. The waves of disruption and isolation during that time took a toll, research shows. Seventy percent of K-12 public schools in the U.S. reported an increase since the start of the pandemic in the percentage of students seeking mental health services at school, according to the National Center for Education Statistics.
Several colleges and universities within the Minnesota State Colleges and Universities system have also tweaked their new student orientation and welcome activities this year to better meet the more acute social and emotional needs of the incoming class.
Julia Roland, the director of first-year programs at Minnesota State University Moorhead, said discussions on managing stress and anxiety have been incorporated into several aspects of the enrollment process as well as the curriculum for a course that each freshman is required to take their first semester. As she plans activities to encourage students to socialize, she's also had to be mindful of planning options with smaller groups, which may feel less intimidating for students who haven't spent much time around crowds in recent years.
"We're hearing a lot of feedback from students about large group anxiety," Roland said. "We're trying to meet them where they are at while also knowing that they are all over the place."
That means pushing for changes within college systems that are often steeped in time-honored traditions, Roland said.