The first of the “Healthy Relationships” webinars for spring 2024 will take place Friday, Feb. 9 from 11 a.m. to 12 p.m. 

The webinar is hosted by the university’s Counseling and Psychological Services, or CAPS. 

Any Kent State student who wishes to attend the workshop is welcome to join, said Pamela Wind, psychologist at CAPS and director of the webinar.

It will teach students ways to determine if a relationship is healthy and how to maneuver through a relationship that may not be healthy. 

“Talking with students about ways to look at the health of a relationship, indicators of healthy relationships, less healthy relationships,” Wind said. “Thinking through what each student individually is looking for in a relationship, or not looking for.”

Students can expect to learn how to navigate all of their relationships, not just romantic ones, through this workshop, Wind said.

“A lot of times with college students, when we say relationships, you automatically go to dating relationships,” Wind said. “But the information that we talk about, some of it is aimed at dating relationships, but also a lot of it is applicable to family relationships, to friendships, to the various relationships we have in our lives.”

To prepare for the webinar, Wind asks that students join with a clear mindset.

“Come with an open mind, come with your purpose for signing up and a goal for yourself,” Wind said. “Also a way to take notes for yourself as we go.”

Additionally, the workshop is interactive, giving students the opportunity to join discussions and ask questions, Wind said. 

“Within the workshop, we ask that students make sure they are joining the workshop from a private location because it is interactive,” Wind said. “I do ask students to participate, to talk, to jot things down as they think of them. There’s a lot of room to ask questions and to share particular concerns,”

The CAPS staff tried to put themselves into students’ shoes when determining what the topic for the workshop would be.

“With our workshops, we try to look as a staff at what it feels like students really need from CAPS,” Wind said. “Obviously relationships are an incredibly important part of our lives. Humans need other humans in our lives.”

After the workshop, students should hopefully be able to reflect on the relationships in their lives and be able to determine what is healthy or not, Wind said. 

“I’m hoping students learn some things to look at within relationships,” Wind said. “What’s more healthy, what’s less healthy. In order to think through what they’re looking for specifically in their close relationships with other people.”

Wind also said that she hopes students will leave the workshop knowing what their next steps should be for terminating an unhealthy relationship. 

Students can register for the workshop until Feb. 9, when it is taking place, Wind said. 

For students who cannot attend on Feb. 9, the webinar will also be available on March 4 and April 4. 

Follow this link to register for the Healthy Relationships webinar and see a list of all CAPS workshops.

Olivia Montgomery is a Digital Tech. You can contact her at [email protected].