Students are criticizing the University of Toronto, after a third student death at the same building in less than two years.

The university announced over the weekend that it would be taking steps to improve safety in the Bahen Centre for Information Technology, after a student death Friday evening. The University has not confirmed that this was a suicide, deferring to the family’s wishes, but two other students have died by suicide at the same building since 2018.

Temporary barriers were installed Sunday on upper floors and other vulnerable areas of the building, and the school said that more permanent and long-term changes will take place later in the semester.

Lucinda Qu, a 24-year-old undergrad who is one of the founding members of the U of T Mental Health Policy Council, said students pushed for barriers after the second student death in March 2019, but were not given a commitment or a timeline from the university.

Sandy Welsh, U of T’s vice-provost for students, said in a statement posted to the institution’s website that the “safety and well-being” of students are its top priorities.

“We’ve listened to concerns about the building and are putting in place measures that will improve safety,” she said.

“We mourn the loss of our student, and we are here to support our community,” Welsh added. “Our thoughts are with the student’s family, friends, fellow students and instructors.”

The University of Toronto’s media relations office said in a followup email that the administration has been working since spring on a long-term solution.“Until that is ready we are putting in immediate measures.”

The March death sparked protests on campus, and complaints of long waiting lists for mental health services.

There were three suicides or attempted suicides overall on campus in 2017 and three in 2018, according to U of T’s annual campus police services reports, compared to one suicide in 2015 and one in 2016.

Visits to campus mental health facilities have increased nearly 30 per cent since 2014, according to the university. In the 2017-18 school semester, the school provided more than 31,300 counselling appointments to students experiencing mental illness across all three campuses.

Fourth-year psychology student Gina Nicoll, who’s also a peer facilitator and co-educator of suicide intervention groups and training at St. Michael’s Hospital, said she is saddened to hear about the recent death but also “defeated and mad.”

“One thing that made me angry about the news is that they did put up temporary barriers,” finally, she said, noting they have long been recognized as a “proven strategy to prevent suicide” and were shown to have an impact at the Bloor Viaduct.

While it comes to suicide, Nicoll believes it’s important to “name it” and “talk about it.” She’d also like to see the school institute a suicide prevention strategy and offer more training for faculty and staff.

It’s not enough to encourage people to ask for help, Nicoll added.

“You can encourage people to talk but is there going to be anyone there to listen?”

The university said signs and other communications about how people can seek immediate help have already been put in place. As well, extra counsellors and chaplains were in over the weekend.

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“We have also put in place new services this fall, including same-day counselling appointments and we have consistently put more resources into this in recent years. We have an expert task force that is consulting with students, faculty and staff about how to improve services.”

Ikran Jama, president of the arts and science student union, said the news left her and other students feeling “powerless,” as they’d already been advocating for barriers and more accessible mental health resources for students.

“The barriers themselves are like a short term kind of temporary solution,” she said, adding the high pressure academic culture of the school needs to change.

Joshua Bowman, president of the university’s student union, said there was “quite a push” from students to put up barriers after the second death, including from one of the student union executives at that time “and there was no action taken on that front.”

But he believes barriers are “just a stopgap solution.”

“It doesn’t change the root of the cause which is the mental health crisis that we do have at U of T,” he said, adding students have repeatedly pressed for reduced wait times at the health and wellness centre, more counsellors, and clearer information about how to get to a counsellor.

He agrees the culture of the school plays a part in the problem.

“At U of T we have this academic culture which is just so inundating and overburdening, we’re called ‘U of tears’ for a reason,” he added.

“A lot of people I think don’t feel comfortable necessarily going to health and wellness because there is a stigma around it, and for those that do try, the immediate thing that they’re faced with is wait times.”

If you or someone you know need help, call Toronto Distress Centre at 416-408-4357. If you require emergency assistance please go to the nearest hospital or call 911. If you are in crisis, visit the Canada Suicide Prevention Service, or call them at 1-833-456-4566.