A Healthy New Year at NMCC
With the start of a new year, many people
are making resolutions to eat healthier, to get
more exercise or to make other lifestyle changes
to improve their health. This attention to
health is nothing new on the campus of Northern Maine Community College.
Concerned for the overall health and
wellbeing of its student body, and in turn the
future workforce of the region, the College has
launched a number of initiatives in the past year
focusing on wellness and fitness.
Recognizing that knowledge is power and
that people need to be informed to make good
decisions, helping students and employees access that knowledge was a key first step.
Two campus websites have been developed to help bring health resources together
in a convenient way. One site offers campus
resources, including a walking path map for the
Christie Complex and tips on everything from
spiritual and emotional to physical wellbeing.
The second website includes a listing of books
and magazines available in the library on the
topic of health and wellness, as well as links to
the campus wellness page and a number of national sources. The site includes links to healthy
recipes and to relevant blogs and videos.
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Both sites link to Aramark’s “Campus Dish”
which provides nutritional and caloric information on menu items. That same nutritional
information can be found on a bulletin board in
the dining commons, and Aramark has an exciting new mobile app that allows people to access
menus and nutritional information on their cell
phones.
Another online resource is Student Health
101, a monthly e-magazine that the College
subscribes to on behalf of the campus community.
It presents helpful information on not just health
and wellness, but a number of helpful areas for
students in a fun, easily accessible format.
The library is also expanding its inventory of
books in this area and has established a dedicated
“wellness” section that houses books on exercise,
stress reduction, nutrition, cookbooks, workout
DVDs, and more.
In addition to electronic and library resources, NMCC students are putting their skills
to work to help their peers and others on campus
keep informed of their health. Students in the
medical assisting program have conducted free,
comprehensive risk-assessments, while nursing
students provide free blood pressure clinics each
fall as they practice their skills.