EDITOR’S NOTE: Responses are edited for length and clarity. 

Central Michigan Collegiate Recovery Education (CMCREW) is a safe space that provides an opportunity for students to live free from the burden of alcohol and other substance abuse, said site coordinator Kayleigh Gotts.

CMCREW provides services that promote wellness of the body and mind. It offers a platform for students struggling with drug misuse (cannabis, nicotine, cocaine, tobacco, Adderall or any study drug) and educates them on how to make informed choices that would better their health.

In order to provide support for students having problematic relationships with certain substance misuse, CMCREW adopts various initiatives and interventional models, including networking with other organizations to ensure that these students are able to fully recover and also achieve academic excellence in their respective careers.

CMCREW holds free virtual trainings on request for different groups like faculty, staff and students. It conducts educational sessions on problematic usage of drugs like cannabis, and safe space training for LGBTQ+ safety. Virtual presentations also include recovery-friendly language, as well as educational seminars on stigma associated with substance use disorders.

There are other similar collegiate recovery programs found in Ferris State University, Delta College and Mid-Michigan University.

Central Michigan Life sat down with Gotts and Jessica Miller, the collegiate recovery program manager, to talk about the activities of CMCREW at Cental Michigan University. 

[Could you throw more light on specific CMCREW events?]

Miller: We aim to normalize social events that don’t involve the use of alcohol or other drugs. The perception amongst college students is that “everybody’s doing it,” but the reality is that not everybody’s doing it.

So, the more that we can put out a message that more students are not engaging in high risk, alcohol and other drug use, we hope we can change that perception.

The introduction to alcohol intake is something that is naturally a part of this time of life in ages 18 to 25, and they are told that there are minimal consequences to their use. Although for some people that is true, there are those students who find that they develop a problematic relationship with the intake of alcohol or the use of other substances. They get to know that interferes in their ability to complete their academic and personal goals and do not know what to do about this -- that’s where we come in as CMCREW. 

This program is designed as a support system, so that students do not have to choose between their recovery and getting a higher education. ... We want CMCREW to be a space where those students can find each other and build community with each other.

We have peer recovery support groups, which we call our recovery groups of care. CMCREW provides an opportunity for these students to come together and share some of their personal unique experiences, as well as support each other on their road to recovery.

We’re not a program of recovery. We want to make that very clear. We’re not trying to compete with any groups out there. We are specifically designed as an on-campus support system for students.

We encourage students to get involved in off-campus recovery opportunities because we aren’t open 24/7. Recovery community off-campus is ... for students that are looking to connect with other students specifically and want to be encouraged and validated in their experience, this is a safe place for them to do that.

Through one-on-one coaching with Gotts, (it) provides a wellness plan with them looking at various life domains in the peer group meetings. 

We also are open to helping students that are impacted by somebody else’s alcohol or drug use, because there may be students here on campus that are used to being a caretaker for maybe a parent or maybe their partner ... and that’s impacting them academically. We want to be able to support these students as well.

[Why is this program important to you?]

Miller: I am a person in long-term recovery. For me that means I haven’t used alcohol or drugs since Feb. 23, 2013. These types of services that CMCREW now provides was not available to me while I was in college. All the information that I got shared with me when I was in college about alcohol and other drugs was part of “Just say no to substance use.”

Nobody ever talked to me about it in anyway; that is, it was just never talked about. I never felt heard, I never felt comfortable to ask questions about it.

And so, this work is important because we are really trying to create an environment that is open to students being able to ask questions such as, “Do I want to keep using substances or not? Where can I get help with substance use?”

The only agenda we have is that we don’t want alcohol and other drugs to get in the way of students completing their academic pursuits. So, we just want to have a real conversation about it without any finger wagging or judgment.

We want it to be automatic that people think about us when they think about a resource for students struggling with alcohol and other drug use or a student that’s looking for support with their recovery.  

We hope to get our name out there as best we can in collegiate recovery programs. Not every school has one. So, it really is a privilege for the students here to be able to have us here and we feel very fortunate to be able to be here. 

Gotts: This is important to me (because), first and foremost, I come from a family with a very long history of substance use disorder. I lost my father to alcohol use disorder in 2018 when I was still a student at Central. I am a firm believer that if something like this were available to him when he went to college, that maybe his life would have looked vastly different.

Secondly, I graduated from Central with a bachelor’s in social work and I have a passion for working with college students. I love this opportunity, and Central is my home. If I can provide the best experience for the students here, I’m happy with that.

[What does your typical day look like?]

Gotts: So, one of the benefits of this position is that every day is a little bit different, however, a typical day is as follows: I get here at 8 a.m., and I might have a session with a student to do some wellness coaching.

I could have an early intervention,meeting with a student who was referred to us for risky behavior or risky substance behavior, which is also a one-on-one thing. 

I may have an all-recoveries peer support group. So, sometimes, I’ll be preparing for recovery sports support. Everyday looks a little bit different.

Miller: Gotts is always doing ongoing professional development training. She’s interacting with other collegiate recovery coordinators around the country. Spending, lab time planning for different events that are coming up. 

[Do you have an emergency line?]

Gotts: We always refer students to other 24-hours crisis management program if they’re having a mental health crisis after work hours. We are not designed to be 24/7 accessible. So, we would refer students to contact organizations like Listening Ear or contact suicide helplines, if they needed some service right away.

CMCREW is located in Foust Hall 133, and can be reached by calling 989-774-2739 and emailing CMCREW@cmich.edu or gotts1km@cmich.edu.