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Right Resources at the Right Time

OSU Assist is a multidisciplinary support team that provides compassionate mobile crisis response and wraparound services for individuals facing extenuating circumstances or experiencing other forms of distress. 

988

  • National crisis hotline available 24/7 by phone or text
  • Connect with a counselor
  • If appropriate, in-person resources may be dispatched
  • Not operated by Oregon State University

OSU Assist & Department of Public Safety

  •  541-737-7000 or 911
  • OSU Assist (daily, 1 PM - 1 AM), DPS (24/7)
  • Connect with dispatch
  • Depending upon the nature of the call, OSU Assist, Public Safety Officer, and/or Law Enforcement may be dispatched

Counseling & Psychological Services

  • Call 541-737-2131
  • Available 24/7 by phone
  • Connected with counseling staff or after-hours crisis counselor
  • Operated by Oregon State University

OSU Assist may be dispatched

  • When the caller or person is currently on campus
  • When there is no report of violence
  • When there is no report of weapons or access to weapons on the scene
  • When it involves a potential mental health and wellness matter

Types of response

Distressing situation, suicide ideation, safety planning, resource connections, survivor support, delivery of difficult news, mental health evaluation, welfare checks

Remote video URL

Crisis Response Process

OSU Assist is appropriate for situations such as crisis support, conflict resolution, substance abuse issues, the delivery of difficult information and resource connection. The team will only respond to calls if there are no reports of weapons, threats of violence or an immediate medical emergency.

If a 911 or non-emergency call meets the requirements of dispatching the OSU Assist team, the team will de-escalate and stabilize the situation and/or call upon additional first responders, as needed. OSU Assist will provide wraparound services at the time of the call — drawing upon the expertise of crisis response professionals to better support students — and in follow-up case management by connecting students to helpful resources.

Frequently Asked Questions

The OSU Assist team is comprised of four Responders and one supervisor. OSU Assist responds to calls through the 911 dispatch system and the Department of Public Safety’s emergency number: 541-737-7000.

OSU Assist operates every day, 1 p.m. to 1 a.m. The Department of Public Safety will prioritize and support all crisis calls when OSU Assist is not operating.

911: Your call will be answered by the local dispatch unit, depending on your location. Your call will be connected to local dispatch units if you are off campus. If you are currently on campus, your call will be connected to the university’s department of public safety dispatch. Dispatchers will ask a series of questions to determine the appropriate first responders to send to assist.

 

541-737-7000: Your call will be answered by the university’s department of public safety dispatch. Dispatch will ask several questions to learn more about the circumstances and support you may need. Depending upon the nature of the call, OSU Assist, a Public Safety Officer and/or Law Enforcement may be dispatched to support you or any person who needs help.

 

988: When calling 988, callers first hear a greeting message while their call is routed to the local Lifeline network crisis center using geo-location. A trained crisis counselor answers the phone, listens to the caller, understands how their problem affects them, provides support, and shares resources if needed. The caller is automatically routed to a national backup crisis center if the local crisis center cannot take the call. The Lifeline provides live crisis center phone services in English and Spanish and uses Language Line Solutions to provide translation services in over 250 additional languages for people who call 988.

Not currently. Responders are only dispatched to calls on the Corvallis campus. OSU Assist is always exploring partnerships with local mental health crisis and law enforcement agencies whereby they would offer resources to OSU students off campus.

The OSU Assist Team is a multi-disciplinary team of individuals with diverse experiences and expansive knowledge that reflects our university community. All team members have received training in first response, trauma-informed care, implicit bias, utilization of the dispatch system, survivor support, de-escalation techniques, mental health assessments, and more. The training provided is supplemental to the team members’ previous professional training.

No. The OSU Assist Team is not armed.

Yes. The Responders will help when called to an incident on campus, regardless of whether the person is a student, non-student, staff or faculty.

The creation of OSU Assist was partly because marginalized communities are disproportionately impacted by negative experiences with law enforcement. The program continues to train team members to provide supportive services while recognizing the complexity of the community’s lived experiences. As the program grows, OSU Assist will continue to engage with community partners to ensure these services are accessible and supportive of LGBTQIA+ students, BIPOC students, international students, student veterans, and students with disabilities. The program welcomes student and community partnership to continue to refine the ways we provide services to the community. 

The Responders connect students to wrap-around support services directly during the encounter and after the encounter with follow-up services provided by the university. For example, OSU Assist has strong partnerships with Student Care. Student Care serves as a one-stop shop for case management needs/resources for students on campus. 

No. A “responsible employee” is defined as a university employee that must report any allegation of sexual misconduct or discrimination to the Office of Equal Opportunity and Access. The OSU Assist team does not have these reporting obligations. The Responders are mandated reporters for child abuse and neglect.