Honoring the Wellness Journey: An Evidence-Based Retreat to Build Stress Resilience in Honors Students.

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Bibliographic Details
Title:	Honoring the Wellness Journey: An Evidence-Based Retreat to Build Stress Resilience in Honors Students.
Authors:	Tutuska, Sydney¹, Caldwell, Alexandra¹, Willford, Jennifer¹ jennifer.willford@sru.edu
Source:	Honors in Practice. 2025, Vol. 21, p81-100. 20p.
Subject Terms:	Higher education, Talented students, Self-efficacy in students, Psychology of college students, *Transformative learning, Retreats
Company/Entity:	Slippery Rock University of Pennsylvania
Abstract:	Honors students are goal-oriented, motivated, and engaged achievers. As such, they often experience heavy course loads, manage multiple responsibilities, have limited free time, and sacrifice their health (relationships, sleep, nutrition) in pursuit of their goals. This essay presents an evidence-based wellness retreat designed for honors students at a medium-sized university. Authors describe the retreat’s inception, development, curricular advantages, and administration, with specific examples of targeted evidence-based programming. Eight workshops, designed to build resilience and coping skills, address mental agility and mindset, emotion regulation, social connection, and wellness habits. Authors observe student efficacy in the development of skills and point to positive feedback from participants (n = 17). Results indicate that experiential wellness programming can play an important role in promoting stress resilience among honors students. Authors suggest that the flexibility of a retreat model makes it especially adaptable for honors programs throughout the country, thereby contributing to a growing effort in honors to nurture student mental health and well-being. Detailed descriptions of workshops and assessments are provided, and limitations are addressed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
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Database:	Education Research Complete

Description
Abstract:	Honors students are goal-oriented, motivated, and engaged achievers. As such, they often experience heavy course loads, manage multiple responsibilities, have limited free time, and sacrifice their health (relationships, sleep, nutrition) in pursuit of their goals. This essay presents an evidence-based wellness retreat designed for honors students at a medium-sized university. Authors describe the retreat’s inception, development, curricular advantages, and administration, with specific examples of targeted evidence-based programming. Eight workshops, designed to build resilience and coping skills, address mental agility and mindset, emotion regulation, social connection, and wellness habits. Authors observe student efficacy in the development of skills and point to positive feedback from participants (n = 17). Results indicate that experiential wellness programming can play an important role in promoting stress resilience among honors students. Authors suggest that the flexibility of a retreat model makes it especially adaptable for honors programs throughout the country, thereby contributing to a growing effort in honors to nurture student mental health and well-being. Detailed descriptions of workshops and assessments are provided, and limitations are addressed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
ISSN:	15590143