Counseling Groups and Workshops

Counseling groups and workshops aim to enhance coping strategies, share resources, and foster connection among students. We offer two main types of groups: 

• Counseling Groups typically meet weekly for up to 8 weeks, involve a commitment to attend all sessions, and require an individual  pre-group conversation with the facilitator. As members share and process concerns in counseling groups, relationships and conversations deepen.

• Workshops typically are either drop-in or require a simple sign-up to join. They offer a more informal opportunity to connect with others and build skills. 

Spring 2023 Counseling Groups and Workshops

Counseling Groups

Oasis: Holding Space (virtual)

• 8 Wednesdays, 12 – 1:15pm, March 1 – April 26 (no meeting March 22) 
• Facilitator: Candyce Burke Auguste 

For Black identified students, this space is intended to promote positive mental health and coping. Participants will be able to share and learn in a liberated space about self and community care, the impact of power and privilege, experiences of marginalization, racial/acculturative stress, intersectionality, and identity development. Join with others to give voice to your thoughts and feelings and proactively engage in the radical act of self care and community care. For inquiries and to schedule a required pre-group meeting, contact candyce.burke_auguste@tufts.edu.

Coping with Loss (in person)

• 8 Fridays, 3 – 4:15pm, February 24 – April 28 (no meeting March 24 & April 21)
• Facilitators: Stefan Jadaszewski and Mackenzie Jordan

This is a support group for students who have experienced the death of a family member, partner, or friend. Group members will have an opportunity to talk about their current lives and the impact of loss while juggling the demands of being a student. Participants will form a connection with each other as a community on this shared journey. For inquiries and to schedule a required pre-group meeting, contact stefan.jadaszewski@tufts.edu or mackenzie.jordan@tufts.edu.

Growing Up with Family Mental Illness or Addiction (in person)

• 6 Fridays, 2:15 – 3:30pm, March 3 – April 21 (no meeting March 17 & March 24)
• Facilitators: Marilyn Downs

This group is designed to support students who have a family member or loved one living with mental illness and/or addiction. The group will provide a safe space to share experiences, discuss common challenges, learn resources, and develop strategies for setting healthy boundaries and enhancing self-care. For inquiries and to schedule a required pre-group meeting, contact marilyn.downs@tufts.edu.

Graduate Students Group (in person)

• 7 Tuesdays, 1 – 2pm, February 28 – April 18 (no meeting March 21) 
• Facilitator: Andrew Yuen

This 7-week group offers graduate students a space to process their academic, professional, and personal experiences. Through mutual encouragement and support, attendees will build community, connection, and resilience. Possible topics include challenging perfectionism, mitigating burnout, and reducing imposter phenomenon. For inquiries and to schedule a required pre-group meeting, contact andrew.yuen@tufts.edu.  

Survivors Support Group (virtual)

• 6 Thursdays, 10 – 11:15am, March 2 – April 13 (no meeting March 23)
• Facilitator: Sophie Ricks

For students who have experienced a sexual assault, this group provides a safe space to connect with others, feel understood and supported, learn about common responses to trauma, process experiences, explore decisions about disclosure, consider the impact on relationships, and develop tools for healing. Open to students of all identities. For inquiries and to schedule a required pre-group meeting, contact sophie.ricks@tufts.edu.

TRANScend (virtual)

• 6 – 7:15pm, 1st and 3rd Tuesdays January 24 – April 18
• Facilitator: Xavier Quinn

This support group is a drop-in space for trans, nonbinary, and gender diverse undergraduate and graduate students. Topics vary weekly and are related to gender identity exploration, transition, coping with transphobia, and resource sharing. Students may join Transcend anytime during the semester. For inquiries and to schedule a required pre-group meeting, contact xavier.quinn@tufts.edu. 

Retrain Your Brain: Tools for Managing Anxiety and Depression (virtual)

• 4 Thursdays, 3:00 – 4:15pm, March 9 – April 6 (no meeting March 23)
• Facilitator: Lucia Andrade

If you are struggling with symptoms of anxiety and/or depression, join this group to learn skills that may help you find relief. You will learn basic principles of Cognitive-Behavioral Therapy (CBT) and be able to practice new skills in a supportive space. The group combines education, skill-building, and mindfulness-based approaches to help you build your “tool-kit” of coping strategies. For inquiries and to schedule a required pre-group meeting, contact lucia.andrade@tufts.edu.

Finding Balance: DBT Skills for Coping, Feeling, and Relating (virtual)

Choose either Section 1 or Section 2:

• Section 1: 4 Tuesdays, 3 – 4:15pm, February 21 & 28, March 14 & 28, facilitated by Jen Granquist
• Section 2: 4 Fridays, 1 – 2:15pm, March 31 – April 21, facilitated by Cate Petrowski

Do you struggle with your emotional reactions to situations or in relationships? Join us for this 4-session group that can help you learn coping skills focused on topics such as stress, mindfulness, personal values, understanding and managing emotions, handling distress, and building strong relationships. Group meetings involve education, resource sharing, discussion, and experiential practice. For inquiries and to schedule a required pre-group meeting, contact jennifer.granquist@tufts.edu for Section 1 or cate.petrowski@tufts.edu for Section 2.

Discussion Groups and Workshops (please RSVP facilitator to join)

Connection Matters: International Students Discussion Group (in person)

• 2 Fridays, March 31 & April 7, 11am – 12pm
• Facilitator: Xi Bi

A space for Tufts international students to talk about experiences fitting in or sticking out in groups on campus, staying connected, or struggling with losing touch with support systems back home. We will explore ways to reduce stress and enhance coping skills. Open to all Tufts international students. To RSVP or for inquiries, contact xi.bi@tufts.edu.

Mixed Feelings: Multicultural and Mixed Racial/Ethnic Identity Workshop (in person)

• 2 Fridays, April 14 & 21, 10 – 11:30am
• Facilitator: Xi Bi

This workshop invites multiracial/multiethnic/multicultural identified students to become curious about your “mixed feelings” as a possible result of the interactions among your identities, family compositions, and cultural clashes experienced internally and externally. You will have an opportunity to share experiences of how you are perceived in different spaces, feel connected with others despite different backgrounds, and affirm feelings of pride and compassion toward your whole self. To RSVP or for inquiries, contact xi.bi@tufts.edu.