IIT Kharagpur starts ‘Campus Mothers’ program to ‘provide emotional support’ to students: Read what it is and who will be the ‘Campus Mother’
The Indian Institute of Technology in Kharagpur, West Bengal, has come up with a unique initiative to help students deal with stress by providing them with ‘mothers’ on campus. Under its ‘Campus Mothers’ initiative, the institute will train women residing on campus, both faculty and non-faculty, to provide emotional support and mentorship to students in distress. The proactive measure is intended to help new students adjust to life on campus.
The initiative was announced by the institute’s Director, Suman Chakraborty, who assumed charge last month. In addition to the ‘Campus Mothers’ initiative, a Student Welcome Committee has also been formed by the institute for a broader campus and community development programme. “This committee’s main role is to help new students and their parents settle in and feel at home on campus. They will address the major challenges new students might face,” Chakraborty told The Print.
The decision comes in the wake of three student suicides that happened at the IIT this year, with the most recent being reported in May. 22-year-old Mohammad Asif Qamar, a third-year BTech student and native of Bihar, died by suicide in his room at Madan Mohan Malviya Hall of Residence. Earlier in April, Aniket Walker was found dead in the hostel. In 2022, Faizan Ahmed was brutally murdered during ragging and there were attempts to look like a suicide.
“It’s a shock to me, and all of us as teachers, that we had to lose our beloved students. I believe we need to be active, not just reactive. Often, when such incidents occur, there’s a lot of noise, and steps are taken just for compliance. That approach isn’t enough,” Chakraborty said about the suicides.
Campus Mothers will have an understanding of students’ challenges
Highlighting that students in India are usually closely monitored by their parents till Class 12, the director said that new students cannot be expected to suddenly adjust to their first year in college. The Director said that many of the women receiving training to be ‘Campus Mothers’ have experienced motherhood and therefore have an understanding of the challenges faced by children.
“Many of these women have experienced motherhood themselves, some have grown-up children who may now be living abroad or otherwise independent. Having gone through motherhood, they understand the unique challenges children face. While it’s often said that Indian parents tend to overparent, it’s unrealistic to expect students to suddenly adjust in their first year of college after being closely monitored until Class 12,” he said.
Campus Mothers will engage in informal interaction with students
Explaining the programme, Chakraborty said that participation in the programme will be voluntary. Those volunteering to be Campus Mothers will receive orientation and training in counselling. “That’s why we thought of a structured approach where these ‘campus mothers’ can support students, especially in more challenging situations. They will receive orientation and training in counselling and related skills. Participation in this programme will be voluntary for those who wish to get involved,” the Director said.
The Campus Mothers will engage in informal conversations with distressed students. They can have tea, coffee or dinner with the students to listen to their concerns. Chakraborty said that the initiative will have an amalgamation of personal interaction and the use of technology, as it is not possible to have Campus Mothers engage with every student on the campus. “This kind of personal interaction allows students to express themselves in ways that a mechanised chatbot simply can’t match, there are limits to what technology can do. That’s why we need both approaches. Technology helps because it’s not scalable to have campus mothers engage with every single student individually,” he added.
To address the limitation of personal engagement, the Student Welcome Committee will launch a student engagement initiative, which will include the use of AI-based tools to monitor student well-being. Moreover, the students will also be encouraged to take part in physical activities like sports and other extracurricular pursuits. A detailed plan is being prepared for the implementation of the programme.
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