Counseling & Psychological Services

Ask the student directly:

• Are you thinking about suicide/killing yourself?
• Sometimes when people are experiencing difficult situations, they have thoughts of suicide; have you?
• Have you ever thought anyone in your life would be better off if you were dead?
• With this much stress in your life, are you having thoughts of wanting to die?

Be sure to use the language "suicide," "ending your life," or "killing yourself," rather than "Are you thinking of hurting yourself?" - this is a different question, and there are many types of self harm that are unrelated to suicide.

These questions are anxiety provoking! Practice saying these out loud to get more comfortable. Asking about suicide directly will not cause a person to become suicidal.

It's ok to acknowledge with your student that this is a difficult conversation to have. Remember that no one is going to have all of the answers or the perfect response to someone in crisis. Focus on letting the student know that they are not alone and that you want to get them the help they need.

You do not need to understand the details of the situation or agree with what your student is saying in order to validate their emotional pain.

Listen to what your student is sharing, demonstrate empathy, and validate the student's emotional experience. Stay calm (even if you are not calm on the inside!). 

Examples of ways to express empathy and validation:

• That sounds really difficult
• I imagine that would feel really overwhelming
• I am sorry that you're experiencing that
• I don't have an immediate solution, but I want to help you find the support you need

Maintain student autonomy and give the student choices in next steps. Ask the student what they need from you - do they need you to listen? Do they need you to help problem solve? Do they need you to provide additional resources? Trust that the student knows what they need.

Provide the student with resources for the Counseling Center, including office location, website, phone number, and social media accounts. If appropriate, share this crisis resource page for hotline numbers and after hours resources.

Follow up with the student afterward. This can be as simple as a short email checking in to see if they need any additional support!

If the student would like you or a friend to accompany them to the Counseling Center, bring them to the office at Suite 241 Lawrence, M-F 8AM-4PM.

If you or your student need additional resources:

Crisis hotlines and the local crisis center can provide safety planning support or help facilitate next steps with the student if they deem it necessary. Provide hotline information and Valley Creek Crisis Center phone number (see top of page for crisis contact information).

The Counseling Center staff provides a suicide prevention training, WCU Cares, several times throughout the academic year. Keep an eye out for sign ups at the start of each semester. Department trainings can also be requested at ccoutreach@wcupa.edu.

2024-2025 Red Folder

Chester County:
Valley Creek Crisis Center - 610-280-3270
469 Creamery Way
Exton, PA 19341

Chester County Crisis Services
Mental Health Emergency | Chester County, PA - Official Website (chesco.org)

---

Delaware County:
Delaware County Crisis Connections Team - 1-855-889-7827
Mental Health - Delaware County, Pennsylvania (delcopa.gov)

Crisis Center at Crozer-Chester Medical Center - 610-447-7600
1 Medical Center Blvd. South Drive
Upland, PA 19013
Crisis Center at Crozer-Chester Medical Center (crozerhealth.org)

Mercy Fitzgerald Hospital - 610-237-4210
1500 Lansdowne Ave.
Darby, PA 19013
Mercy Fitzgerald Hospital (trinityhealthma.org)

---

Montgomery County
Access Services mobile crisis support - 855-634-4673

Mobile Crisis - Access Services
Crisis Hotlines | Montgomery County, PA - Official Website (montgomerycountypa.gov)

---

Bucks County
Mental Health Crisis Lines: 1-800-499-7455
Upper Bucks: 215-257-6551
Central Bucks: 215-345-2273
Lower Bucks: 215-785-9765

Crisis Services | Bucks County, PA

Mobile Crisis Intervention: 1-877-435-7709
Mobile Crisis | Lenape Valley Foundation (lenapevf.org)

---

Philadelphia County
Mental Health Delegate Line: 215-686-4420
Behavioral Health Crisis Intervention Services - DBHIDS
Crisis Response Centers: Assessment Centers and Crisis Response Centers in Philadelphia - DBHIDS

---

Berks County
Holcomb Behavioral Health Services - 610-379-2007
401 Buttonwood Street West Reading, PA 19611
Berks County Crisis Center
ruOK Berks
County of Berks - Crisis Intervention Services

---

Lancaster County
Lancaster County BHDS - 717-394-2631
750 Eden Road, Lancaster, PA 17601
Crisis Intervention | Lancaster County BHDS, PA

---

Other County Crisis Lines for Pennsylvania:
Crisis Intervention (pa.gov)

Pennsylvania Co. Crisis Services List.pdf (pa.gov)

---

Delaware State Crisis Resources: Crisis Intervention - Delaware Health and Social Services - State of Delaware

New Jersey State Crisis Resources: Department of Health | Division of Mental Health and Addiction Services | Hotlines (nj.gov)

New York State Crisis Resources: Hotlines (ny.gov)

 

610-692-7273 (sexual assault)

This hotline is used for those who have been a victim of a sexual crime or attempted sexual crime. This can include rape, sexual assault, inappropriate touching, sexual harassment, sexual abuse, incest, trafficking, child pornography, and more. Please call the hotline if you have been a victim of a sexual crime and need assistance, or if you have any questions regarding a sexual crime.

610-692-7420 (other crimes)

This hotline is used for those who have been a victim of any non-sexual crime. This may include domestic violence, physical abuse, arson, homicide survivors, robbery, theft, identity theft, assaults, DUI victims, harassment, stalking, labor trafficking, and all other non-sexual crimes. Please call this hotline if you have been a victim of a crime and need support from an advocate, or if you have any immediate questions about a crime that occurred.

Location:
135 W. Market Street
West Chester, PA 19382

General office number: 610-692-1926

All services provided to victims of crime and their families are completely free of charge and are confidential*, regardless of whether or not the client wishes to report a crime to law enforcement.

*The Crime Victims' Center of Chester County, Inc. (CVC) treats communications with clients as confidential except in circumstances in which CVC receives information that a child has been or may be abused or that a client is planning to inflict self-harm or harm others.