UTEP officers were unable to provide information about the average amount of student debt among UTEP students. (Elliot Torres/Borderzine.com)

Counselors see a rise in mental health issues among college students

EL PASO— With college enrollment constantly increasing, the number of students with mental health issues on college campuses has also gone up. The National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) estimates that anxiety, depression and general stress are on the rise. In 2012 “more than 25 percent of college students have been diagnosed or treated by a professional for a mental health condition within the past year,” according to  NAMI. These are individuals who come into university and find themselves dealing with “stress, relationships, and adjusting to college life,” which happen to be some of the major issues weighing on student’s minds at The University of Texas at El Paso, says Cecilia Holguin, a licensed clinical social worker and one of several counselors at the University Counseling Center. A major problem for these students is a lack of awareness that help is nearby.  “We always try to do outreach.

College students change their major at least three times over the course of their college career, according to the National Center for Education Statistics. (Yuritzy Ramos/Borderzine.com)

College students tend to change majors when they find the one they really love

EL PASO — Choosing a college major is a hard decision for students to make because it can determine the student’s career future along with income level and having to pick a different one later piles on more stress. “My dad wanted me to become an English teacher because he loves literature and reading books,” said Victor Chavez, a 29 year-old graduate of the University of Texas at El Paso. Chavez gave into his father’s pressure and started his UTEP college education as an English major in 2004, but a year later he began to question his career path and switched to math after finding his true passion. “I’d love teaching don’t get me wrong, but I really wanted to teach something that I was more passionate about–math,” Chavez said. About 80 percent of students in the United States end up changing their major at least once, according to the National Center for Education Statistics.

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Hispanic students now the largest minority group on four-year college campuses

By Richard Fry and Mark Hugo Lopez

WASHINGTON – Hispanics are now, for the first time, the largest minority group among the nation’s four-year college and university students, with the number of 18- to 24-year-old Hispanics enrolled in college exceeding 2 million, reaching a record 16.5% share of all college enrollments. As their growth among all college-age students continues to outpace other groups, Hispanics also made up one-quarter (25.2%) of 18- to 24-year-old students enrolled in two-year colleges, according to an analysis of newly available U.S. Census Bureau data by the Pew Hispanic Center, a project of the Pew Research Center. In the nation’s public schools, Hispanics also reached new milestones. For the first time, one-in-four (24.7%) public elementary school students were Hispanic, following similar milestones reached recently by Hispanics among public kindergarten students (in 2007) and public nursery school students (in 2006). Among all pre-K through 12th grade public school students, a record 23.9% were Hispanic in 2011.

UTEP offers solace to its Mexican students

EL PASO, Texas — The office of the vice president for student affairs at the University of Texas at El Paso has issued a letter addressed to students commuting to class from Mexico, encouraging those who may be experiencing difficulty coping with the recent murders in Juarez of two UTEP students to utilize the services the university provides. “The recent loss of students, Manuel A. Acosta and Eder A. Diaz, has been a difficult situation for the entire UTEP community. I am aware that for those of you who live in Juarez and other parts of Mexico or those of you who have immediate family there may be experiencing that loss more acutely,” said Dr. Richard Padilla, Vice President for Student Affairs. Padilla encouraged the UTEP student body to watch for students who may be struggling with the recent tragic events. “Let them know that there are people on campus who may be able to help.

More reaction to the killing of two UTEP students

EL PASO, Texas — The murder of two University of Texas at El Paso students continues to reverberate on campus, eliciting reactions from students, faculty and administration. “It really pains me,” said Dr. Gina Nunez-Mchiri, professor of Anthropology and Sociology at UTEP. “They’re our students… We know people who are losing family members to the violence and it affects us. It takes our sleep away.

Hundreds of Juarez students commute daily to class at UTEP

EL PASO, Texas — A young man catches a ride with his friend and they make their half hour trip home from school across the international port of entry into the streets of the most dangerous city on the U.S.-Mexico border. Manuel Acosta, 22, drove his red Nissan Sentra from The University of Texas at El Paso (UTEP) to the Colonia Rincones de Santa Rita where his friend Eder Diaz, 23, lived with his parents in Ciudad Juarez, Mexico. The trip home was routine to both students. Chihuahua State Police reported that a group of masked men armed with .223 caliber rifles similar to the NATO military rifles intercepted them at the intersection of De La Arbolada and Manglares streets in near of Diaz’s house. The assailants fired 36 shots killing Acosta at the scene and fatally injuring Diaz, who died in the early morning hours of November 3 at a hospital in Juarez.

Anxiety problems in college students rising

UTEP/EPCC Voices of Anxiety

EL PASO, Texas – There are little anxieties everyone experiences from day to day: an approaching deadline, an important dinner, or a first impression. Yet when the feeling of being on edge fails to stop, there is high chance you or someone you know might have an anxiety disorder. Anxiety disorders have become, now more than ever, even more prominent in college students. According to the Anxiety Disorders Association of America (ADAA), over the past fifteen years, there has been a steady increase of college students – regardless of gender, age, or ethnicity – seeking help at their campuses for dealing with intense anxiety. In the context of college, having anxiety could mean decreasing the student’s ability to perform well or effectively in school.