Outreach & Education

Educational Outreach & Workshops

Counseling and Psychological Services (CAPS) offers educational programs of general interest to the Penn State community. Frequent topics include:

• Show You Care 
• CAPS Services
• Stress Management
• Sexual Assault
• Bystander Intervention
• Assertiveness and Relationship Issues

Request a Workshop or Presentation

We are able to respond to a limited number of requests for outreach activities, such as tabling, workshops, presentations, post-ventions, and consultations, based on staff availability and the timing of the event. Outreach activities can be offered to students in classes, organized student groups, and faculty/staff groups but the request must focus ultimately on serving the mental health and wellness needs of students at our University.

We ask that you give us no less than TWO WEEKS notice for any outreach request, but please keep in mind that the more advance notice, the more likely we can identify a staff member who has matching availability. In particular, more notice is desirable when requesting programming at peak periods such as during the first two weeks of classes and midterms or when programming requires significant preparation. We may ask your group to consider attending an existing program that CAPS is offering in the event of duplicate requests. We will only offer a very limited number of outreaches during finals week and these must be requested no less than three weeks in advance. Programs in which a large number of students are expected to be present will be given priority.

To request an outreach program, please complete our Request Form. If there are special circumstances, please contact Dr. Kate Staley, at kxr119@psu.edu.

Media and Class Interview Requests

Requests for interviews for established media outlets (on campus and state/national media) are given priority over requests for interviews for class projects and assignments. All media requests, when possible, should be made with at least ONE week's advance notice. All requests for class project/assignment interviews must be made with at least TWO weeks advance notice, and no interviews for this purpose will be done during finals week.

Please do NOT send requests to multiple staff persons at CAPS. All requests must come via the outreach request form.

It is strongly recommended that individuals review the CAPS website BEFORE making a request as many answers to frequently asked questions may be found there. Data on mental health issues among college and graduate students and what conditions and issues campus counseling centers often address can be found in the Center for Collegiate Mental Health (CCMH) annual reports and by using the Data Navigator tool.

Resources for Class Assignments

These online mental health resources may be helpful for those seeking information about mental health issues for personal use or class assignments.

• PsycInfo - primary database for international literature in psychology and related disciplines
• American Association of Suicidology
• PsychCentral - Online mental health resources
• National Eating Disorder Association
• National Institute of Mental Health