Family Guide
Learning to Care For Self
Health Services
The Department of Health Services is provided by Spelman College as an on campus
facility, convenient and available to its student body. The Department of Health
Services offers a variety of services including the evaluation and treatment
of minor illnesses and disease. At this point in your daughter’s life,
it is important that she learn to take responsibility for her health and learn
the habits of good health maintenance. Education on preventative and wellness
strategies for healthy lifestyles, comprehensive women’s health services,
some immunizations, asthma treatment, laboratory services and health screenings
are among the comprehensive services offered. Confidential referrals to local
medical providers including HIV testing and counseling are also available. Encourage
your daughter to familiarize herself with the services, her insurance information, before she
needs it, and to keep the insurance card she is issued within easy access.
Counseling Services
All students who attend Spelman College are eligible for
counseling by the licensed professional counselors of the
Counseling Services Department. It is its philosophy to encourage
healthy, positive emotional and psychological growth in young
Spelman women. At Spelman, seeking counseling is considered
a sign of strength, not weakness. Services include individual,
group and couples counseling. An array of psycho educational
programs are given throughout the year on relationships,
self-esteem, assertiveness, substance abuse prevention, anxiety
and depression prevention, and many others. Students are
often referred to the Counseling Services department by faculty,
staff, residential life directors, etc. Students self-refer
and encourage their friends to enter counseling. Self-referrals
may result from a person wishing to resolve a longstanding
problem or to enhance their personal growth. Students with
prior experience in counseling can continue with the counselors
in this department. The psychiatric consultant is also available
to students referred by their counselor . Students
must obtain a referral from counseling services if they wish
to use Spelman’s insurance to pay for services provided
by an outside professional.
Disability Services
The primary goal of the Office of Disability Services is to ensure that students
with disabilities have equal access to all programs, both academic and extracurricular.
Disability Services coordinates and provides a variety of services for students
with learning and physical challenges and mental and emotional challenges, which
substantially limit one or more major life activities. In addition, the office
of Disability Services strives to create and promotes a positive attitudinal
and behavioral response from faculty and staff when interacting with students. To
receive services, students must provide current documentation of their disability
from a qualified health professional.
PRIVACY: All of the above offices comply with existing federal and
state guidelines regarding privacy of patient health information. (HIPPA).
Privacy of College Records
The Family
E educationalRights and Privacy Act
Enacted in 1974, the Family Educational Rights and Privacy
Act (FERPA), protects the privacy of college students’ records.
Under FERPA (also known as the Buckley Amendment) parents
transfer their rights to the student’s educational
records once the student reaches 18 or attends a postsecondary
institution.
Therefore, the students' educational records
cannot
be
inspected by or released to parents.
Educational records include, but are not limited to the
following: academic records, health records, counseling records
and disciplinary records. Although parents may be paying
the student’s college expenses, the student’s
record is still protected by FERPA. Spelman, as an educational
agency, will protect the student’s right under FERPA,
unless the student chooses to waive it.
Learning
Resources
Self-Discipline
and
Character
