For college students, oftentimes the idea of taking care of their mental and physical health falls to the backburner as they focus on their classes and extracurriculars. Between running from the Dolan Science Center to the D.J. Lombardo Student Center to your dorm and back again, it can be commonplace to forget the importance of self care and wellness amidst the hustle and bustle of your everyday routine. However, for Assistant Director of Student Wellbeing Jamie Greenwolf, there is nothing more important than taking care of yourself throughout your academic career.

Perhaps you’ve participated in the diverse array of programs hosted by JCU’s Wellness Center or sought invaluable guidance on subjects spanning from managing anxiety to navigating complex situations; chances are, you’ve encountered Greenwolf in some meaningful capacity.

A self-described “funny dad,” Greenwolf’s office sits nestled below the Dolan Residence Hall and beside the university’s counseling center. Being a positive force for nearly six years at John Carroll, Greenwolf and his staff launched multiple events around campus including the women and nonbinary workout and bystander intervention training.

However, higher education was not always on Greenwolf’s radar. Originally, rather than building up the futures of the students around him, he wanted to curate houses and go into construction management.

“I went to Eastern Michigan for undergrad,” Greenwolf said. “When I was in high school, I was part of a class my senior year where we built a house. I went to East Michigan because of their good construction management program.”

Later, Greenwolf switched his focus to communication and Fraternity and Sorority Life, carrying over passions from his campus involvement as the president of both his own fraternity and the campus’ Interfraternity Council. Along with this, Greenwolf was an orientation leader and his university’s mascot for a time.

After graduating from Eastern Michigan University, Greenwolf attended James Madison University to obtain a Masters of College Student Personnel Administration degree. While there, he held a position as a graduate hall director and later as a graduate assistant for fraternity and sorority life. Additionally, he worked at the university’s LGBT center which he says helped him learn how to create safe and accepting programming at JCU.

Before arriving at John Carroll in 2018, Greenwolf learned multiple valuable lessons including “how creating boundaries can communicate care” and analysis. In fact, Greenwolf told The Carroll News that, with many of the skills he currently uses in his facilitation at JCU, he gained them from observing his past role models like his FSL advisor at Eastern Michigan.

“The person who worked at Eastern Michigan really pushed us to be critical thinkers and to say ‘why are we doing this?’” Greenwolf elaborated. “‘What’s the point of this?’ ‘How are we being intentional?’ That’s a lot of how I approach conversations with people and that’s been a big part of my facilitation style; having discussions and dialogue that gets a little bit deeper than the surface level discussions.”

These experiences helped Greenwolf enter the position he is in today, offering a vast array of initiatives to students. Along with these sessions, the Wellness Center offers wellness coaching, which is a short term form of support for students going through stressful situations.

“Our office has many things,” he told The Carroll News. “Whether I’m doing them or someone else is doing them… anything around healthy relationships, stuff around suicide prevention, mental health, anxiety, disordered eating, body image, sleep, self care, masculinity, alcohol use, drugs…any kind of programming.”

Regarding his current approach, he focuses heavily on evaluating the impacts of his decisions rather than following steadfast rules, making him a “test the boundaries kind of person.” These values, including a focus on DEI and vulnerability, help guide him through his day to day life.

“Every decision I make is based on [my] values,” Greenwolf started. “Not because of the end goal and trying to reach an end; it allows more flexibility and spontaneity which I appreciate and I value.”

Presently, along with his plentiful responsibilities regarding wellness, Greenwolf also teaches a course on gender studies for undergraduates, rooted in his “care” for the topic rather than a need to bolster a resume.

“I’m teaching the gender studies class and that in no way supports my future role of being a counselor,” Greenwolf stated. “It does because I’m learning throughout the process, but it isn’t helping me achieve a degree… I don’t think we should create careers that are like a ladder because you can’t switch ladders. I’m more about creating a career that’s like a portfolio.”

This care also extends to whom he interacts with. Meghan Maselko ‘24, a Peer Health Advocate working under Greenwolf, says that he is “…a role model for all students on campus and is a friendly face for anyone who needs someone to talk to.”

“Jamie is truly one of my favorite people on campus,” Maselko told The Carroll News. “Not only does he push me to be a better leader, he pushes me to be a better person. I truly could not have survived college without him and I am forever grateful for his mentorship and support!”

This thought is echoed by Leah Harrigan ‘24, another Peer Health Advocate on campus.

“Jamie is so many things, and so many different adjectives, but I think it would be best to call him ‘real,’” Harrigan stated. “He’s caring, understanding, aware, authentic and honest. He truly wants to make this campus community a better, more welcoming place for everyone!”

In the future, Greenwolf hopes to work for private practice as a clinical mental health counselor, finishing another Master’s Degree in clinical mental health counseling clinical mental health counseling. For now, he hopes to complete his work with the gender studies course and “be more intentional with the development of the staff with graduate students and undergraduate students.”

When asked what he would like to tell students, besides saying that “you should not say you want five kids until you have one,” Greenwolf emphasizes that “in a good way, no one’s watching you.”

“You’re fine,” he continued. “You’re allowed to go get help. You’re allowed to be your weird self, you’re allowed to do whatever, like no one’s watching.”

If you are interested in any of the resources discussed in this article, email [email protected].