On July 13, 2023, the Kwame Nkrumah University of Science and Technology (KNUST) Counseling Centre (KCC) in collaboration with the College of Humanities and Social Sciences Association (COHSS) organized the first edition of an open forum towards mental health at the School of Business Post Graduate Auditorium. This open forum, the first of its kind on campus, aimed at encouraging students to speak out and be intentional about their mental health.

Mr. Rabbi Darko, the College of Humanities and Social Sciences Counselor, was one of the speakers at the event. He encouraged students to speak up about issues they faced and spoke about the importance of believing in oneself and capitalizing on opportunities. According to Dr. Rabbi Darko, individuals are capable of achieving more than they think and should always focus on their strengths.

Master Xavier Ziekye, the president of the College of Humanities, also spoke at the event. He expressed his disappointment in the low turnout and added to the plea of students. Master Ziekye shared that many students had called him to ask why their names were included when academic results were posted on notice boards.

Other students joined the conversation to give suggestions as to how management can tackle mental health concerns. The use of social media was advocated for, especially since this is a Generation Z. Mr. Rabbi Darko added that management has taken steps to solve the problems of the student body, highlighting that most issues were financial problems. Another issue raised by students was about the visibility of the counseling center. They advocated for management to be intentional about publicizing the services of the counseling community. Suggestions were made and noted.

The event was one to remember, emphasizing the importance of being intentional about mental health and driving away from the narrative that having a mental health problem is “madness.” We need a society with more unashamed conversations and not conservative narratives bottling us up.