Boe House, St. Olaf’s on-campus counseling center, has moved completely online like many other services to ensure safe and healthy practices during the COVID-19 pandemic.
However, Boe House is still open. Steve O’Neill, psychologist and director of the counseling services at St. Olaf, stresses that Boe House remains ready to serve the student community through tools like tele-health, same-day scheduling and various online resources.
“We are so happy we can provide services and that we have the technology to do it … It’s not ideal, but it’s the best option we have,” O’Neill said.
Although Boe House still faces wait times for students scheduling appointments, O’Neill states that the wait-times are actually significantly shorter this semester at about a week to a week-and-a-half.
To alleviate wait times and dense scheduling toward the end of the semester, the center will switch to same-day only appointment scheduling for all new and existing clients on Nov. 4, O’Neill announced in an email to students on Oct. 21.
O’Neill recognizes that some students might require more immediate help, especially in light of the pandemic and related anxieties. Boe House has developed the “Let’s Talk” program, as well as employed four interns to help see students, each of whom are working towards their master’s degrees in psychology or social work.
“The college wants us to be accessible … so we bring in grad students frequently. In fact, I think this is the twenty-sixth year we’ve done this. And it’s great because the interns are able to get in their clinical experience this way, and we’re able to see additional students,” O’Neill said.
O’Neill also encourages students to use “Let’s Talk” as a resource, especially if they would like to speak with a certified therapist right away.
The program operates every Monday through Friday from 1:30 to 2:30 p.m. The program operates under a first-come, first-serve basis, with a 15-minute time slot per individual.
For more information about the “Let’s Talk” Program, email Alyssa Ondich at ondich1@stolaf.edu.
allbro1@stolaf.edu
