What is 974-HELP? 

974-HELP (865-974-4357) is: 

• A 24/7 referral line 
• A safe and private way to share a concern for a fellow Vol 
• A way for students to get help for themselves 

During regular business hours (Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.), 974-HELP is answered by a member of the Center for Care and Resilience (CCR) team. After hours and on weekends and holidays, it is answered by a mental health professional who is able to provide in-the-moment support and will submit a referral to the CCR team for additional follow up and care. 

What happens when I call?

A case manager gathers information about your concern. The information gathered is kept private. 

CCR staff gather information and assess the factors contributing to the concerns of a student, family member, or administrator. CCR staff meet with students to create and implement a plan that supports self-advocacy, growth, and a return to a level of functioning most likely to promote success. That plan includes connecting students to appropriate on-campus and community resources that best support their needs. 

If you are calling on behalf of someone else, you may request that your identity remain private. However, as the student of concern may not have shared their struggles with others, they may be aware that you reached out.  

A care coordinator will contact the student by phone or email to set up a meeting within one business day. 

Center for Health Education & Wellness

The Center for Health Education and Wellness empowers all Volunteers to thrive by cultivating personal and community well-being. We are dedicated to a community model that is embodied in the “Vols help Vols” commitment.  

CHEW acknowledges that health and wellness are multifaceted and aims to promote well-being across eight dimensions of wellness. We prioritize risk reduction and develop programming based on national research and data collected from our Volunteer community that addresses relationship and sexual violence prevention, alcohol and substance use, recovery, and general health and wellness.  

Rocky Top Recovery is a collegiate recovery program dedicated to supporting students in recovery from substance use and mental health disorders. Through community building, campus programming, and advocacy, students provide a supportive environment for students who are in recovery or interested in recovery.  

More information is available on the Center for Health Education & Wellness website.

Distressed Student Protocol

The goal of this protocol is to foster student success and well-being. It was developed as a guide for faculty and staff to help distressed students. 

If a student’s behavior represents an immediate threat, call 911. 

If the threat is not immediate, but are you concerned a student may harm themself or others, call 974‑HELP(4357). 

Emergency Blue Light Phones

More than 150 emergency blue light phones are available on campus. To find locations, select the “Safety” layer on the online campus map. 

Inclement Weather 

UT remains open except during the most severe weather conditions. Decisions regarding campus operations are based on conditions on campus and along major transportation routes. Members of the campus community are also expected to monitor local weather and road conditions to assess their own travel risk. 

Students are expected to make every reasonable effort to attend class but are encouraged to avoid taking unnecessary risks when traveling. If weather conditions warrant, UT may adjust campus operations to enhance safety by reducing in-person activities while continuing to fulfill core responsibilities through modified hours and remote operations whenever possible. 

When UT decides to adjust campus operations, delay opening, etc., notifications are distributed through UT Alert, shared with local media outlets, and posted on UT’s Campus Status webpage. For additional information, please refer to the full procedure. 

Office of Emergency Management

Provides guidance, training, coordination and resources in support of campus preparedness efforts for disasters and major emergencies, including UT Alert and the Safe at UT app. 

Campus Personal Safety app

The Safe at UT app, available through a free download for Apple or Android devices, provides a suite of safety resources for the Volunteer community. Place an emergency call, live chat with dispatch, report an incident or concern, or invite a friend or family member to virtually walk or drive with you. 

Student Counseling Center

The Student Counseling Center is UT’s primary facility for personal counseling, psychotherapy, and mental health outreach and consultation services. The Student Counseling Center maintains case files; records are confidential and only accessible to authorized staff and mental health providers working with our confidential team. Records do not become part of any central UT record and can only be released to other parties with the written consent of the student (or due to the rare circumstance of a court order). Students may opt-in to sharing care coordination information with case managers in the Center for Care and Resilience and/or physicians in the Student Health Center but are not required to do so. The Student Counseling Center offers crisis appointments, triage support, short-term individual therapy, as well as group therapy, skills training, seminars, suicide prevention training, and support groups. As a department within the Division of Student Life, the Student Counseling Center has a multidisciplinary team including psychologists, social workers, counselors, and other helping professionals who work collaboratively to support the UT student community. 

To get started, all students complete an initial triage assessment. Please call our office at 865-974-2196 to get started. One of our front-line staff will screen callers to determine what type of appointment is appropriate and schedule the student with a mental health professional. The first appointment will be a triage appointment to assess your needs and collaboratively make a plan for what campus or community services may best meet those needs.    

The Student Counseling Center offers mental health crisis support. During regular business hours (8 a.m. to 5 p.m., Monday through Friday; 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Wednesdays), if you have an urgent mental health need or are in crisis, call the Student Counseling Center at 865-974-2196 or stop by the office at 1800 Volunteer Boulevard, on the second floor of the Student Health Center Building, to ask about a crisis appointment. After hours and on weekends and holidays, the phone is answered 24/7 by after-hours crisis counselors who can provide in-the-moment support. These counselors cannot make or change appointments at the Student Counseling Center, but they do submit referrals to the Student Counseling Center team for follow up and care of students who call after hours.

Additional crisis resources are available. In cases of an immediate threat of harm to self or others, please dial 911 for emergency response, on or off campus. 

Student Health Center

The Student Health Center offers convenient on-campus care designed to support well-being. Services include primary care, acute care, and specialty clinics for allergy immunotherapy, immunizations, physical therapy, psychiatry, sports medicine, surgery, travel medicine, and women’s health. Student Health Center clinical care is supported by onsite laboratory, radiology, and pharmacy services.  

The Student Health Center sees patients by appointment only. Walk-ins are not permitted. Information about scheduling appointments can be found on our website.  

The Student Health Center is open 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Fridays and 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. on Wednesdays. The last appointment each day is scheduled at 4 p.m. Students with health-related concerns can call 865-974-5080, 24 hours a day, seven days a week to speak with either our triage nurses or our after-hours nurse advice line. The after-hours nurse advice line does not provide access to after-hours appointment scheduling or prescription refills.  

In a medical emergency, call 911 immediately. For urgent concerns after hours, after-hours care is available for eligible students through the University of Tennessee Medical Center Emergency Department at a special rate. To receive after-hours student agreement pricing, students should present their UT student ID and personal health insurance card or information. 

The Student Health Center’s community health team oversees faculty notification of class absence due to a personal health-related illness or injury. Students who need to miss class for an illness or injury related reason may fill out a Health & Illness Support Form in their patient portal.  

Title IX Response Team 

• Addresses individual reports of sexual misconduct, relationship violence, and stalking 
• Ensures consistency across case responses 
• Provides oversight of supportive measures, investigations, and individual case resolutions

UT Police Department 

The University of Tennessee Police Department (UTPD) is dedicated to ensuring the safety and security of the campus community. With an authorized strength of 75 fully commissioned officers, UTPD provides professional law enforcement services 24 hours a day, 365 days a year, serving UT and the surrounding community. 

Beyond its public safety mission, UTPD is committed to education, outreach, and community engagement through a variety of programs designed to promote awareness and strengthen partnerships across campus. 

UTPD has earned accreditation from the Commission on Accreditation for Law Enforcement Agencies (CALEA), the International Association of Campus Law Enforcement Administrators (IACLEA), and the Tennessee Law Enforcement Accreditation Commission (TLEAC). These prestigious accreditations reflect the department’s commitment to the highest standards of professionalism, accountability, and continuous improvement while advancing student safety through education, information sharing, and collaborative partnerships.