In last week’s issue, we published an editorial about the importance of being mentally fit and how to seek out help if you or someone you know is struggling with his or her mental health.

We would like to further that discussion this week with a follow-up editorial, to discuss some disturbing issues we came across when doing research about how to get mental help on this campus.

We encouraged students to make use of the counseling center’s website and use its page for help with a number of mental health issues, ranging from anorexia to suicide. What we found when we were browsing the counseling center’s page was not only very interesting, but a bit unsettling as well.

We looked along the left side of the website at the “Suicide Prevention” tab — underneath that tab is a “Forms” link.

Kyle Bailey / Photo Editor

Under that Forms tab we clicked on a link titled “Suicide referral information form.” We realized all visitors to this site were immediately brought to a page that says “404 Not Found.”

No matter how many times we tried to access this webpage we were brought back to the same blank screen — a blank screen that could prevent potentially suicidal people from getting the proper help they may have been finally courageous enough to seek.

This was a complete eye-opener for the executive board members at The Equinox. We struggled to understand why our school provides such an inadequate resource for something so important.

Many times, people who are feeling suicidal are lost and desperate.

The last thing they should have to deal with is a page error that prevents them from getting vital help. We began to question how much care and effort goes into the maintenance of this website.

This is when we noticed that many parts of it were long outdated. In fact, some features and links had not been updated since 2010 and 2011. We believe that with issues as serious as suicide, the college needs to be actively taking measures to ensure the student body is provided with top-notch outlets for help.

College can be an extremely difficult time for many. Stress is at an all-time high when people are underpaid and overworked. Many students are away from their homes and families, which also eventually takes a toll on their mental state.

Not to mention depression is higher in the winter months than during other times of the year.

The college needs to recognize this and needs to be actively seeking ways to improve the overall morale and mental health of its students.

We ask that the Counseling Center take better care of its website.

If it cannot provide the proper help for students who are battling suicidal thoughts, it should at the very least provide a hotline for suicide prevention loud and clear at the top of its website.

This is not simply about needy students demanding pointless changes — this is about life or death situations. This is about those people who have lost hope and are reaching out as a last resort.

We would like to think students can rest assured, knowing that they will be assisted with the best possible help the very moment they come forward and admit they are having suicidal thoughts.

The Equinox as a whole is not trying to blame or point fingers at the Counseling Center staff; we are sure they have been able to assist many students who have needed  and sought help. However, we do believe they should be continuously seeking ways to make their online help, or any help, more accessible.

No student should feel as though their concerns cannot be heard because of technological difficulties. Attempts should be made to come up with a multitude of outlets for students who are battling any form of mental discomfort — to truly make sure they have help readily available for them.

Suicide is not to be taken lightly and we would like to fight for better resources on campus for struggling students.

The Equinox believes that all lives are valuable. Anyone who is struggling with depression, anxiety, post-traumatic stress or any other mental discomfort here on campus should be able to feel confident in the school’s ability to help them get to a healthy place.

We hope to see a change in the website that could potentially save a Keene State College student’s life. Oftentimes students suffering from such mental discomfort are in a fight for their lives. We as The Equinox and we as Keene State College should seek to do everything in our power to allow the people around us to win that fight, and to live the happy and healthy lives they deserve to be living.

According to a dictionary definition, mental health is described as “a person’s condition with regard to their psychological and emotional well-being.” It is apparent from this definition that mental health is a very broad topic. It can range from having anorexia to experiencing PTSD.

The Equinox is deciding to open up a discussion about mental health and what it means to us. We would like to work toward eliminating the stigmas associated with being diagnosed with a mental illness. We encourage all who may be suffering from some sort of mental discomfort to realize that they are not alone, and that it is vital they reach out for help. Here on campus, it is important that students take the time to explore their options for help.

Any student who may be experiencing any form of mental discomfort should access the counseling center. According to their webpage, “The Counseling Center at Keene State College offers a diverse range of short-term emotional health services to all KSC students.”

They are located on the third floor of the Elliot Center and are open Mondays through Fridays from 8:00 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Students can make appointments by calling 603-358-2437 or using email to set up an appointment.

Meaghan Morrison / Equinox Staff

By reaching out to someone at the counseling center, the student may be referred for further help or they may be freed of their mental discomfort simply by talking about their issues and realizing they are not being left in the dark.

It is inevitable that college students face multiple stressors on a daily basis. The combination of being on your own, keeping up with classes and school work, having a job, possibly playing a sport and trying to maintain a social life can be a challenging act to balance. While it is important that students remain both physically and academically healthy, oftentimes students lose sight of the mental aspect of overall health.

We would like to stress the importance of becoming mentally fit. Mental health is just as important as any other type of health. If a student starts to recognize signs of depression or an eating disorder, they cannot ignore this for the sake of embarrassment or shame. It is our hope that students understand that it is human to have emotions. But it is also dire that we recognize when our emotions or abnormalities have reached a point where they interfere with our daily lives and routines.

Many people decide to keep their feelings inside because they fear reaching out for help will give them some kind of label. Being classified as a person with an eating disorder can have a very negative connotation. Not many people want to be referred to as a person with any kind of “disorder.”

KSC as a community should seek out better ways to refer to these issues. We need to rid ourselves of the negative connotations that come along with labeling these struggles as a disorder.

One of the worst things someone can do when they begin to experience warning signs of a possible mental health condition is retreat, because that only magnifies the issue. Experiencing emotional reactions to life is normal, and so is seeking help. Just as there is nothing wrong or shameful in receiving a cast to help fix a broken arm, there should be no shame in seeking out a mental health resource to help manage the stress that comes along with human life.

Any students who feel like they are battling something that is bigger than themselves must realize that it is okay to acknowledge their insecurities or negative thoughts. They must realize that there is help all around them, they just need to take that first step in asking for it. One may be surprised by just how many people are there and ready to listen.

In the City of Keene, mid-October is a highly anticipated time of the year for both community members and the Keene State College body alike. In fact, it even extends much further than just the people who make up the City of Keene.

Each year Pumpkin Fest attracts thousands of people from all over New England, some even farther. Pumpkin Fest 2014 was certainly one for the books and we don’t mean that in a very good way. As a result of an outbreak of chaotic and riotous behavior, a substantial bill of $90,000 was racked up. That $90,000 is made up mostly of overtime fees from the police forces and other safety services, according to an Equinox article.

The Equinox would like to first and foremost say that we in no way condone the unacceptable behavior that took place during Pumpkin Fest. With that said, we do not believe that the student body is entirely responsible for covering the remaining fees of the $90,000 bill.

Philip Bergeron / Graphic Design Editor

Yes, students here at Keene State College are at fault for some of the damages that took place. It is without arguement that hundreds, if not thousands of students from other colleges and universities made their way up to Keene to partake in the festivities that later on got out of hand.

There are multiple people at fault for what happened during that weekend. But placing most blame on the KSC student body and the college itself is not a fair accusation to make. A large sum of the students who acted out inappropriately were identified by police and either arrested or suspended from the college. The college worked with the police to track down and remove the students who made poor decisions at the festival and as a result, these students are no longer a part of our campus community.

So how is it justified that the remainder of the student body, who most likely did not engage in the riots, is asked to contribute to this enormous bill? We believe that students who want to see the festival continue to exist should have the option to make a donation to the festival and contribute if they choose.

However, we do not see it logical that every student be forced to donate. Some students were not even on campus that weekend, some refrained from consuming any alcohol, some remained in the footprint of the festival where none of the riots took place. It is not a reasonable solution to hold every single Keene State College student accountable for what happened on those nights.

Yes, we are one campus. But, ultimately, we are all individuals who made decisions for ourselves that night. Some of us made better decisions than others. Those who made terrible decisions got the punishment they deserved and are no longer permitted on the KSC campus. Those of us who are left most likely did not support the behavior that occurred, so we should not be the ones asked to pay the debt.

Technically speaking, the college is not even associated with the festival, so why should it fall in our hands to make payments towards it? Associating the college with the debt makes innocent students responsible.

In summation, The Equinox believes that KSC as a whole should not be responsible for the behaviors of many who no longer attend the school or were not even students here to begin with. We want to move forward like this and do our part by making sure next year is much safer.

The word “rich” is a very subjective one. As Americans, our idea of being rich is more than likely being wealthy.

But what if in other countries, being rich was measured in culture and tradition instead of in monetary value? Many Keene State College students who attended alternative break this past winter 2014 would argue that spending time in the Dominican Republic, among other countries, taught them a new meaning of the word rich. Here in the United States, even at the worst of living conditions, we probably still have it better than most developing nations.

Americans are no strangers to the term “first world problems.” This is a modern day term sarcastically used to describe problems that are very trivial in the grand scheme of things. Complaining about a lack of wifi connection, sighing when our go-to coffee flavors are out of stock at Dunkin Donuts and acting as if having a fully charged phone is a life-or-death situation is something we often find ourselves doing.

Philip Bergeron / Graphic Design Editor

But what if our problems posed a threat to our survival?

For many across the globe, basic needs such as having clean water are rarely met. Think about where you sit at this very moment. Perhaps you are at a desk. Your cell phone is more than likely within sight or reach, you are probably in a heated room with walls, doors and overall, the shelter you are in is secure. Look above you, is there a light on? Is there a television on nearby? Is there a radio playing background music? These are all parts of our lives that we often take for granted.

Chances are, we don’t even acknowledge when we are using these things. The Equinox would argue that here in the United States and in other advanced areas, we might have a false sense of wealth.

We may be measuring wealth in ways that are not entirely that important. We would like to argue that richness can be measured in culture and tradition; in the way that people treat one another. We are aiming to lessen the gap between rich and poor. Instead of looking at richness as a spectrum with two different ends, it should be looked at as a continuum where there are points in the middle that create a balance of richness and poorness in different areas.

For example, a person who is rich in wealth and has a lot of money to buy materialistic items may not be spiritually rich in their relationships with family members or friends.

We believe that people need to change their overall perceptions of what it means to be rich. Instead, people need to realize that there is a plethora of ways people can be rich. They can be rich in wisdom, culture, spirit and tradition, among countless other things. Ultimately, it is near impossible to experience richness in all ways possible. We all experience being rich in different ways.

It is crucial that we do not fall into the mistake of becoming individuals solely invested in material things. Having money as your motive can serve a good purpose as long as you don’t let it supersede your need to treat others kindly and with respect. It is also an important part of life to keep your family’s culture and customs alive. To let something with so much history and passion slip away is certainly sad and disheartening.

Engaging in community service work such as attending trips during alternative spring break and winter break are good ways to educate yourself and realize that our perceptions of the world here in the United States may not be the only way we should be looking at life. The Equinox would like to encourage people to be more conscious of the fact that there are variations of richness that all need to be acknowledged.