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Struggling to cope with the death of a student who took her own life on campus, students and staff at Concordia University’s faculty of fine arts may be setting a new standard for how such a tragedy is handled.

Ming Mei Ip, 24, a student in art education, died by suicide in a studio in Concordia’s VA building at René Lévesque Blvd. and Crescent St. on Feb. 15.

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Ip was a performance artist, painter, poet and dancer who openly shared her struggles with hopelessness, body image and self love in an online blog and in public performances. A close friend confirmed Ip had been struggling with mental illness for several years.

It is the first time a student has died by suicide on Concordia’s campus, university officials say, and the tragedy has expedited a re-evaluation of how the school responds to mental health crises that was already underway.

The classic response to suicide on campus has been to hush it up and release as little information as possible in the hope that students and faculty can quickly move on.

Canadian universities have been grappling with rising demands for better mental health support on campus. In a 2016 survey, one in five post-secondary students reported feeling depressed, anxious or otherwise experiencing mental health issues in the previous 12 months, and 2.1 per cent said they had attempted suicide.