University of Wyoming Wellness Center Receives National Award

The University of Wyoming Wellness Center will receive the Outstanding Emerging Wellness Program Award from a national student affairs organization.

The American College Personnel Association’s Wellness Commission selected the Wellness Center for the honor, according to a UW news release.  ACPA supports and fosters college student learning through the generation and dissemination of knowledge, which informs policies, practices and programs for student affairs professionals and the higher education community.

The award recognizes a breakout wellness program or department, which effectively encompasses areas including, but not limited to, physical, emotional, spiritual, occupational, social and intellectual dimensions, says Arif Nuri, ACPA Wellness Commission chair-elect.

“We gauge a potential recipient of the award on an innovative program/department that has wide-reaching influence on student wellness on campus and/or how the program/department is geared to improving wellness for students and/or staff,” Nuri said in a statement.

Lena Newlin, Wellness Center assistant director, says it is an honor for the center’s staff members to be recognized for their work in health promotion and wellness at UW.

“We know that there is a direct connection between health and academic success, and we are grateful that UW has invested in the Wellness Center to support students and promote campus health,” Newlin said.

The UW Wellness Center opened in November 2015, following a two-year renovation and expansion project of the UW Half Acre Recreation and Wellness Center. Located in the southwest part of Half Acre in the “free zone,” which requires no gym membership to access, the center is open to students and members of the university community.