Imagine you came across a schedule that devoted blocks of time to activities such as “milk and cookies” and “legos and coloring.” You might assume you’d found a mother’s plan for her toddler’s birthday party, but in this case the reality isn’t so cute. Yes, those activities were cooked up by a mother figure, but Jaclyn Clevenger designed the schedule, not for diapered tots looking to party, but for young adults struggling with post-election anxiety. 

Clevenger is the director of student engagement at Georgetown University’s McCourt School of Public Policy. It’s an elite institution that’s expected to prepare future leaders for careers as diplomats, senators, and policymakers. But instead of training students for the rough and tumble world of geopolitics, Clevenger coddles them with her “Self Care Suite.” And she’s not alone. 

Across the nation, schools such as the University of Oregon and the University of Michigan offer friendship bracelets, calm jars, and therapy dogs for students mourning Donald Trump’s election victory. Professors at universities such as Harvard, Columbia, and Penn cancelled classes so students could engage in “self care.”