Keene State College
PA-14: Wellness Program

KSC prioritizes wellness, and through the “Healthy KSC” initiative, a wide range of health and wellness services are made available to staff and faculty. These services include providing leadership, programming and guidance on a wide range of health issues, including individual health, family health, worksite health and quality of life. Some specific programming that is offered at KSC includes free yoga and meditation programming, group hikes and walks, investment and retirement counseling, and nutrition and dietetic counseling. Additionally, staff and faculty members can sign up for a membership to use the KSC recreation center and pool. Faculty and staff also have access to the KSC Employee Assistance Program (EAP) which offers a wide range of services. Some of the most popular services include assistance finding providers, ranging from mental health counselors, childcare providers, financial planners, and more.

KSC also offers many health and wellness services to our student population. These include a campus-wide campaign titled “Live Well KSC” that offers a range of wellness offerings and that aims to cover the entire “Wellness Wheel”, which includes social, physical, intellectual, environmental, cultural, spiritual, financial, emotional, and occupational wellness. KSC also has an in-house Wellness Center which offers students both physical and mental health wellness services. Membership to the KSC Recreation Center and participation in KSC Recreational Sports are available to all students, and the fees for participation are included in the mandatory student fees. KSC truly values the holistic health and wellness of our student body. For example, during the challenging times presented by the COVID-19 pandemic, KSC took an extremely proactive approach to keeping our campus and larger community safe, which meant students who had been contacted by KSC contract tracers were routinely required to quarantine for 2 weeks. KSC started a "Quarantine Buddy" program, which placed faculty and staff volunteers in virtual contact with students who were in quarantine. The staff/faculty members provided moral support, uplifting messages, care packages and more to students in quarantine.

There are also many "spontaneous" programs that pop up, including a popular weekly hiking trip that was led by Faculty during the fall 2020 COVID semester. Weekly yoga also is offered by a faculty member. These spontaneous programs are available to all KSC community members.

Keene State College joins with the American College Health Association (ACHA) in supporting the findings of the Surgeon General that tobacco use in any form, active and passive, is a significant health hazard. Keene State College further recognizes that environmental tobacco smoke has been classified as a Group A carcinogen by the United States Environmental Protection Agency. In light of these health risks, Keene State College hereby adopts a tobacco/smoking policy that addresses prevention, reduction and cessation actions as they pertain to tobacco/smoking issues.
Keene State College supports the health goals of Healthy People 2020 to reduce tobacco use and initiation among youth and adults, and to positively influence our community by helping people to remain or become tobacco/smoke free. Efforts to promote a tobacco/smoke-free environment have led to substantial reductions in the number of people who smoke, the amount of tobacco products consumed, and the number of people exposed to environmental tobacco smoke.
We recognize that the implementation of a tobacco/smoke free policy effects tobacco users/smokers at Keene State College. Prevention, education, and cessation initiatives are available to support the non-use of tobacco products/smoking among employees and students.

In order to protect the health, safety and comfort of Keene State College students, faculty and other academic appointees, staff, alumni and visitors, and consistent with state law (RSA 155:64-77), it is the policy of Keene State College to restrict smoking, vaping and all other tobacco use, inside all buildings owned and occupied or leased and occupied by KSC including the College Camp on Wilson Pond, at special events and conferences, in KSC vehicles and in other outdoor campus spaces as described in Section V:2. Smoking, vaping and the use of all tobacco products as defined in Section V:1 is prohibited within twenty five (25) feet of building entrances, outside stairways to buildings, outdoor passageways to entrances and stairways and near air intake units. Where the needs of smokers and non-smokers conflict, smoke-free air shall have priority. In addition, Keene State College supports education programs to provide tobacco cessation and prevention initiatives to our students, faculty and other academic appointees and staff. This policy supersedes all other tobacco policies at Keene State College.