Among the many organizations within the Ohio University Russ College of Engineering and Technology, one stands out as the only club specifically tailored to the well-being of engineering students.
Engineers Reducing Anxiety, Stress, etc. was co-founded by Cody Petitt roughly five years ago. Petitt is a mechanical engineering graduate from OU and now works on campus as an assistant professor of instruction in mechanical engineering. He also serves as the organization’s faculty advisor.
Petitt said engineering has stereotypes that ring true. One such stereotype is that mental health is a topic many engineers do not feel comfortable talking about, but are nevertheless affected by.
“There was a need that existed, and I wanted to do something about it,” he said.
ERASe operates as a leadership board. Board member Andrew Krebs, a senior studying mechanical engineering, serves as the current president of the organization.
Krebs got involved with ERASe in the spring semester of his second year at OU. Originally joining because he was advised to as part of a course he took, Krebs eventually became a more active member and was offered the position of vice president.
“I was just kind of nodding and ‘yessing' for a few weeks, but then I got more involved ... by the end of that semester, I was offered the vice president position,“ he said. "I was like, ‘Okay, I’ll stick around.'"
Krebs said his courses are difficult, and the educational part of engineering is not completely accurate in comparison to the real world, which is hard to balance.
“It’s a hard major; classes get really difficult … It can feel like there’s a lot of pressure on you, especially in an academic environment where what you do academically is very different from what you do professionally,” he said.
ERASe does not function like a traditional club on campus but instead serves as a way for all engineering students to stay connected with minimal commitment.
Krebs says ERASe hopes to serve as the “middleman” between mental health resources on campus and engineering students. This entails the planning board, made up of seven students meeting once a week to plan de-stressing events that typically run from morning to evening and are open to all engineering students.
“We have dozens of people come through ... we have our small team, and then an extension of that is our faculty and then everyone else that participates,” he said.
Krebs’ favorite event the club has hosted is rock painting.
It is no secret students involved in all areas of study are under academic stress. Maggie Lane, a sophomore studying electrical engineering, is currently taking 16 credits. Lane is involved in the university chapter of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers and the Society of Women Engineers.
“I haven’t met another engineering major who isn’t constantly stressed about something,” she said.
Lane thinks ERASe is a valuable resource for engineering students.
“I feel like it’s pretty important, and it shows that everybody’s struggling because sometimes we might think that everyone else is doing fine ... It’s nice to know that everybody else is also struggling,” she said.
The week of Oct. 20, ERASe is hosting a wellness week event, inviting various speakers and groups to talk to engineering students about mindfulness. The club hopes to host a bingo night, a painting event and bring in service dogs throughout this semester.
