The University of Michigan provides a wide range of resources and programs to support the well-being of every member of the community, including faculty and staff.
“I encourage everyone to familiarize themselves with these resources, both for personal awareness and to build community wellness,” said Chief Health Officer Rob Ernst. “Having ready knowledge of wellness resources can better position you to help when a co-worker, student, or other community member may need support.”
Highlights this year include a self-paced course for instructors on student mental health; a revamped toolkit for well-being; and movement consultations through MHealthy.
Another example is the Nature Rx app. Available for free within the Michigan App, Nature Rx is a user-friendly tool that encourages U-M community members to take restorative breaks outdoors by helping them locate green spaces on and around campus.
By guiding users to nature spots and offering helpful details about what to expect, the app supports mental and physical well-being, facilitates social connection and promotes enjoyment of the outdoors.
“Time in nature has many positive effects on our well-being,” said Katie Stannard, behavioral health project coordinator, University Human Resources, and Nature Rx project team leader. “It offers a chance to tap into a sense of calm, experience emotions like awe and curiosity and renew our attention.”
Go to nature-rx.umich.edu/nature-rx-app.
Here is a list of some of the other programs to help support U-M faculty and staff.
Healthy lifestyles and overall well-being
MHealthy: The university’s flagship health and well-being program is an avenue for faculty and staff to engage and find support in a variety of areas, including nutrition, physical activity, financial well-being, alcohol management and tobacco cessation. Go to mhealthy.umich.edu.
MHealthy Movement Consultation: A virtual, 45-minute consultation with an MHealthy physical activity staff member to talk about your goals, discuss possible barriers and get personalized advice around designing a movement routine. Go to https://hr.umich.edu/benefits-wellness/health-well-being/mhealthy/faculty-staff-well-being/physical-activity/mhealthy-movement-consultation.
Michigan Medicine Office of Well-Being: Supports teams and individuals to cultivate a culture of shared purpose, trust, accountability, aligned values and psychological safety where all can learn and grow. Michigan Medicine team members can visit umhealth.sharepoint.com/sites/OfficeofWell-Being.
Mental health
An Instructor’s Guide to Promoting Student Mental Health and Well-being: Instructors at the University of Michigan now have access to a self-paced course on role-appropriate ways they can support student mental health. The course content was developed by the Center for Research on Learning and Teaching’s CRLT Players in consultation with campus mental health experts and the Center for Academic Innovation. Go to umich.instructure.com/enroll/GWEKJ4.
Faculty and Staff Counseling and Consultation Office: Along with offering short-term, confidential counseling, the office also provides personalized coaching services and hosts support groups for faculty and staff on the Ann Arbor, Dearborn and Flint campuses. Go to fascco.umich.edu.
Michigan Medicine Office of Counseling and Workplace Resilience: Offers confidential, compassionate, evidence-based counseling, consultation and debriefing services to all Michigan Medicine faculty and staff. Go to counseling.med.umich.edu.
Well-being Toolkit: Check out a revamped set of tools and activities that support well-being. While useful for individuals, it is specially designed to include group facilitation tools for instructors, staff, student organization leaders. Go to wellbeing.umich.edu/tools-resources/the-well-being-toolkit.
Health-related workplace resources
Department of Environment, Health & Safety: Supports the U-M Mission through partnership, guidance, and education to promote health, safety, protection of the environment, and regulatory compliance in settings across campus. EHS also offers guidance on environmental concerns including heat waves and air quality. Go to ehs.umich.edu.
MHealthy Ergonomics Awareness Program: Provides ergonomic tips and educational resources on how to minimize risk for injury and improve your comfort and productivity at work and home. Go to: hr.umich.edu/benefits-wellness/health-well-being/mhealthy/faculty-staff-well-being/ergonomics-awareness/self-help-resources.
Occupational Health Services: Provides services to Michigan Medicine and Ann Arbor campus faculty and staff for the prevention, treatment and rehabilitation of occupational illnesses and injuries. Go to hr.umich.edu/benefits-wellness/health-well-being/occupational-health-services.
U-M Health Response: Originally launched during the pandemic, this site includes a variety of guidance and resources including a data dashboard tracking levels of disease in the community and details on campus vaccination clinics. Go to healthresponse.umich.edu.
Work-life resources
Culture Journey: The University of Michigan is on a journey to build a culture that fosters trust and provides a strong foundation to live up to our highest ideals. Go to culturejourney.umich.edu.
Resources for Child and Family Care: Find resources and information to support life’s responsibilities, including child care, lactation information, and backup options for child care, personal care, and elder care. Go to hr.umich.edu/about-uhr/service-areas-offices/child-family-care.
Remote Resource Guides from Information Technology Services: For those who work remotely, several resources can help bring your university work to you. Guides are available for the Ann Arbor, Dearborn, Flint and Michigan Medicine campuses. Go to its.umich.edu/remote-resource-guide.
University Human Resources: Provides information about working at U-M, including employee benefits and wellness, upcoming holidays and season days, retirement planning, resources to support mental, emotional and physical health, updates to benefit plans and more. Go to hr.umich.edu.
Employee advocacy
Equity, Civil Rights, and Title IX Office: Provides support, resources and education to promote a safe and non-discriminatory learning, living and working environment for all members of the university community. It includes information related to sexual and gender-based misconduct, disability and accessibility, and civil rights discrimination. Go to ecrt.umich.edu.
International Center: Serves international faculty, staff and their families and hiring units on the Ann Arbor, Dearborn and Flint campuses. Assists with immigration advisement, case preparation and management, compliance and risk management guidance, programming and advocacy. Go to internationalcenter.umich.edu.
Office of the University Faculty Ombuds: A confidential, impartial, informal and independent resource that helps resolve academic and administrative problems and disputes through procedures that may be preferable to formal grievance or judicial proceedings. Go to facultyombuds.umich.edu.
Office of the Staff Ombuds: Promotes a civil and inclusive university community by providing independent, confidential, impartial and informal conflict resolution services to all non-bargained-for staff on the Ann Arbor campus and at Michigan Medicine. Go to staffombuds.umich.edu.
Sexual and Gender-Based Misconduct Reporting: U-M is committed to preventing and addressing sexual and gender-based misconduct. All members of the U-M community are encouraged to share information about possible misconduct. Learn how to get support, make a report or view the university’s Sexual and Gender-Based Misconduct Policy. Go to sexualmisconduct.umich.edu.
Voices of the Staff: U-M’s employee-engagement program provides the opportunity to share ideas and define the campus community issues that matter most to staff. Members provide staff input, develop resources and events, and meet with university leaders. Go to voices.umich.edu.
Career development
ADVANCE Program: Delivers programs, resources and research supporting faculty recruitment, retention, climate and leadership. Examples include Launch Committees, which offer a circle of support for new tenure-track assistant professors as they begin their careers at U-M, and faculty recruitment workshops, which teach practices that make searches more successful in producing diverse candidates. Go to advance.umich.edu.
Career Path Navigator: A tool that displays university job classifications and can assist in personal career planning by showing how an employee’s current position relates to other market titles in the U-M Career Family Classification System. Go to careernavigator.umich.edu.
CEW+: Supports U-M students, faculty and staff and the surrounding community with events and workshops, funding, counseling and advocacy initiatives. Offerings include career and education counseling and the Women of Color in the Academy Project. Go to cew.umich.edu.
Center for Research on Learning and Teaching: Collaborates with faculty, administrators and graduate student instructors to support and enhance learning and teaching. Go to crlt.umich.edu.
Organizational Learning: U-M’s central department for professional, career and leadership development offers free courses for faculty and staff on the Ann Arbor, Dearborn and Flint campuses and at Michigan Medicine. Organizational Learning also promotes campus culture change initiatives, lifelong learning resources and opportunities. Go to hr.umich.edu/organizational-learning.
LinkedIn Learning: Thousands of online courses are available at no cost to faculty, staff, temporary staff and students through LinkedIn Learning. Go to hr.umich.edu/linkedin-learning.
U-M Onboarding: Resources, tools and information for hiring managers or new employees to support new employee success at the University of Michigan. Most onboarding resources on this website are for all new staff members at U-M, including Michigan Medicine. This does not include faculty, house officers, postdoctoral fellows, student workers, temporary employees and contractors. Go to hr.umich.edu/onboarding
— Sara Holliday in the Office of the Chief Health Officer, and Matt Snyder in University Human Resources contributed to this report
