After seeing a headline on Instagram of a new Israeli law that Palestinians under the death sentence would face hanging, Santa Rosa Junior College third-year environmental science student Lauren Fowler, who was already having a bad day, shut off her phone. Fowler couldn’t banish the sadness or disappointment from her mind, so she resorted to a new form of media, one that, according to Fowler, isn’t designed for people to react emotionally to.
“When I’m consuming unfortunate news that angers me, it’s usually on Instagram, but when I consume other news from independent journalists like Taylor Loretz, it’s much less frustrating,” Fowler said.
Like Fowler, when SRJC students see headlines and images of war in Iran and oil prices skyrocketing, Immigration and Customs Enforcement killings in city streets and overcrowded detention centers, criminalization of trans communities, AI replacing future jobs and the Trump Administration’s climate action, they choose other options to get their mind off what they are seeing or reading. “You can’t undo the information that you’ve learned, and the dissatisfaction and unhappiness that I’m feeling is the reality of what is going on geopolitically and within our own country,” Fowler said.
How SRJC students get their minds off the news
According to a December 2025 Pew Research Center study, nearly 15% of young adults say they follow the news, while 93% say they get their news from digital platforms, and 33% of young adults say the news makes them scared or confused.
SRJC second-semester psychology student Angelina Susner has a subscription to The New York Times to get reliable news, and when that news becomes too much, she delves into her favorite hobbies, such as reading and drawing to give her mind a break from the headlines.
“I try to distract myself by doing things I enjoy. If I see something on social media and it’s overwhelming, I sort of go past it, which I feel guilty about,” Susner said. SRJC second-semester political science major Leigha Bradley talked to her friends to gauge their reactions to ICE protests she had seen online.
“To get away from the news, I’ll talk to my friends and see their reactions. I also take a break and put my phone down and go on a hike or something to disconnect from everything that’s happening right now,” Bradley said.
According to the Mental Health American Fredericksburg Region, 55% of youth report that uncertainty over the future and the current socio-political climate and international issues contribute to their stress. “I feel like the news becomes the most overwhelming when I’m not discussing it with other people in the community and I’m not taking moments to process it,” SRJC fourth-year student Maeve Kraybill said.
While seeing the news, Kraybill can acknowledge the privilege she has to be watching it and not experiencing it. I have the ability to step away and not watch the news, but there are a lot of people that don’t, and even in this community, I would argue that not feeling like you have to engage in current events is a privilege.”
SRJC helps with student stress over processing the news
While students are seeing an increase in distressing news, faculty at SRJC are noticing heightened student stress and are exploring options to help students through this difficult time.
According to Sarah Laggos, district spokesperson, SRJC has taken a holistic “community of care” approach for supporting student struggles by providing basic needs services.
“SRJC provides counseling, crisis support and wellness resources, along with outreach and education to help students navigate stress and build resilience,” Laggos said. “SRJC is continuing to expand services, with a focus on trauma-informed care and embedding support across SRJC locations so students can access help where they already are.”
According to SRJC mental health supervisor Kirsty Viera, a percentage of students are arriving at SRJC’s student health services for help and resources from stress caused by the news. “Back in the day, we would watch the five o’clock news, so you knew you were sup-
pressed to some certain information,” Viera said. “What’s happening now is you’re standing in the grocery store and you open your phone and some newsbite comes in, or you’re laying down for bed wanting to see some funny video or see what your friends are up to, and then you’re having a jarring experience.”
According to Viera, students getting their news through social media is causing an increase in stress, and she recommends students go on a news diet, limiting how much news they consume, and curating their media feed to a variety of credible news sources.
“There are different ways to stay informed that don’t involve social media. There are other ways to get information and to find news sources that are reputable or have a sort of ethical or legal standard, like finding reliable news sources,” Viera said.
For students who want resources to help judge news sources, sites like Allsides, Media Bias/Fact Check and Poynter Institute fact-check the news. With the severity in news, students are worried that the events and issues they see online will leave the screen and ap-
pear in their own lives. SRJC English for multilingual students faculty Camillia Trombino agrees. Trombino witnessed students at SRJC’s Roseland campus not wanting to go to class because of concerns about possible ICE officers being present, which was later confirmed to be false.
Kraybill argues that she has seen more action on the influx of news at a student level, rather than at a district level. “I see a lot from the students, especially within the community of clubs. I’ve seen a lot from the students trying to support each other, make sure that we all have a safe place to be and process on the student end,” Kraybill said.
As world events seem to intensify, students have to decide whether to focus on their own sanity or the insanity of the world. For SRJC third-year anthropology student Jasper Silveira, the answer is easy. “Well, the world might be falling apart, but I have a midterm tomorrow,” he said.
