About The Wellness Spot

Mission Statement

The mission of Barnard’s Health Promotion Program is to promote the health and wellness of the Barnard student body through peer education, educational programming, individual health behavior consultation, campus-wide health campaigns, community outreach, and advocacy. The Wellness Spot supports wellness as an integral component of learning. Our programs aim to help students achieve their academic and developmental potential while at Barnard, and to prepare them to make positive health decisions throughout their lives so they can fully engage in the world.

General Services

Workshops

Peer educators present workshops and programs in the residence halls on a variety of topics, including healthy eating, safer sex, healthy relationships, self-care, sleep, communication, stress reduction, and body image. Resident assistants (RAs) and student groups can request programs through The Wellness Spot, which are then assigned to peer educators during weekly meetings. In addition, our staff provide trainings and workshops to student groups on topics including contraception and safer sex, stress management, self-care, and bystander intervention. 

Resources

The Wellness Spot has a wide variety of resources including health newsletters, books, journals, magazines and brochures. You're welcome to browse our resources any time the office is open!

Who We Are

Staff

Cristen Kennedy, M.Ed, Director of Health Promotion and Education

Cristen can be reached at wellwoman@barnard.edu or ckennedy@barnard.edu

Peer-Eds

The peer educators are Barnard students who volunteer to provide information to the Barnard and Columbia communities about a range of health and wellness issues. The peer education program began at Barnard in 1986. Well-Woman was established in 1993 to bring together preexisting small topical peer educator groups to form one comprehensive group. In May of 2022, Well Woman changed its name to The Wellness Spot.

Where We Are

The Wellness Spot is located in the Barnard Quad on the first floor of Reid Hall. To reach us, enter through the Brooks Hall entrance. You will need to show your ID to the front desk attendant. Turn left after passing the Reid Hall elevators. The office is located at 119 Reid Hall, which will be on the right.