Student attendees of the mental health event working on their ornaments, Wednesday, October 1, 2025, in Houston, Texas. | Gillian Wisniewski/The Cougar
UH Wellness hosted its second “Step Up!” bystander intervention workshop for the 2025-26 academic school year on Oct. 1, designed to inform students on tools to actively intervene in situations where potential harm may be present.
Students participated in a fall-themed craft and information session.
“Workshop-based sessions are effective for students because they often give information in interactive ways that students can easily understand and teach to their friends,” said Assistant Director for Sexual Health Education JR Rubinsky.
Rubinsky organized the workshop and guided students through a variety of role-playing scenarios that helped them practice managing distressed individuals, knowing when to seek help from authorities, and using specific communication tools to connect people with proper resources.
Participants of the workshop described the experience as engaging through the view of a student lens.
“It’s not just a sit down presentation,” said world cultures and literatures senior Marie Garcia. “They actually have activities for people to talk and get to know one another at their tables.”
During the workshop, Rubinsky emphasized the importance of mental health, and referenced the Wellbeing Improvement Survey for Higher Education Settings.
The WISHES survey found that out of 2,000 students surveyed on the UH campus at the beginning of the academic year, around 50% are struggling with mental health with only 35% of students experiencing psychological distress currently engaged in treatment.
“These statistics show that many of our students still need access to resources,” Rubinsky said.
In addition to emphasizing the importance of mental health on college campuses, the presentation covered tangible ways students could make positive impacts in situations they may see in their daily lives.
“I learned the different ways in how to intervene in a situation,” Garcia said. “You don’t have to physically go up to someone or talk to them. You can always look from a distance, make sure everything’s okay and even report to someone if necessary.”
After the session, Rubinsky reflected on the larger goal of the Step Up! Intervention sessions.
“I hope that students will take away that if they do not stand up no one else might,” Rubinsky said.
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