by Rachael Slivka
Staff Writer

Though some students may find themselves overwhelmed with stress, depression, or the usual confusions of college life, not everyone is aware of a simple phone service that can help. 

8 to 8 is an all-student-run listening and referral service available to the Wesleyan community every night from 7pm to 7am, including weekends.

"It’s a good service that a lot of colleges have. It’s good when people have things they want to talk about to have a place that can just listen to them without judgement. That drew me to
it," said ‘Roger,’ an 8 to 8 listener.

Anonymity is kept on both sides, as the counselors use fake names so that no one should feel uncomfortable. The 8 to 8 listeners use pseydonuyms to refer to themselves.

Some nights bring in a heavier stream of calls than others. The number of calls received varies throughout the semester, though more people tend to call after 8 to 8 chalkings have been
placed on campus. 

Trained students work in two shifts every night. The first shift is from 7-11pm while the second shift is significantly longer from 11pm — 7am. As the name implies, 8 to 8 used to be open
from 8pm to 8am. The times were changed because the counselors felt it was safer to walk home at 11 rather than 12 in the evening.

"It’s an opportunity to make a difference. Even if you don’t know who it is you’re talking to on the phone, you know that there are people walking around on campus that you helped,"
said ‘Scott,’ who has been in the service for three years.

The student counselors go through a very extensive training program before they can become peer counselors. The application process itself is quite intensive to assure that everyone
that counsels is highly qualified and a good listener. There is no set number of available positions each semester so as many applicants that qualify are admitted.

About mid-way through the semester, after students are accepted into the program, they must then complete over 50 hours of training, enabling them to handle the most difficult
situation. Though most of the training is done internally by present counselors, experienced outside trainers are brought in as well.

"The best two months I have spent here at Wesleyan were the month I spent training and the month that I trained others," said ‘Scott,’ who served as one of the head trainers this year.

Listeners are trained to handle a wide range of situations dealing with subjects such as sexuality, eating disorders, family issues, death, dying, loneliness, depression, religion, race and
just about anything else a student might stress over. Students are even trained to handle the most serious of situations such as suicide calls.

"The training does make you reevaluate the way you talk and the way you listen, even just in everyday conversation. It helps you learn to keep an open mind," commented ‘Roger’.

The students part of 8 to 8 put in a total of 1800-2000 volunteer hours for the academic year. While the hours are long and the conversations sometimes serious, those who volunteer their
time at 8 to 8 said they truly love what they do.

"[8 to 8] is the absolute number one best thing that I’ve done at Wesleyan. The people that are on the service are the best people that I’ve met while here and people who I wouldn’t have
met otherwise because we’re all from such different backgrounds. We get really close from spending so much time together," ‘Scott’ said . "I can’t imagine what my time would have been like without being in the service."

Should students have any concerns at all, they can reach 8 to 8 at x7789 from 7am to 7pm, every night all week, until classes end.