Chaminade University’s Counseling Center brought smiles to campus this Tuesday afternoon with its monthly Pops and Positivity, a casual outreach effort designed to help students feel seen, supported, and connected. The Pops and Positivity, which began during the second week of classes this semester, has quickly become a familiar sight around campus. Peer mentors walk from building to building with coolers full of popsicles, stopping to chat with students in the courtyard, on the lawn, outside classrooms, or on their way to lunch.
Graduate students Mikala Lacuesta and Kamalei Foster, both Psychology majors and current peer mentors, help organize and run the initiative. They said their goal is simple but meaningful: meet students where they are and build trust through once-a-month, face-to-face interactions.
“We had an ice cream social last school year, but we wanted to switch it up and do something every month,” Lacuesta said. “The whole message behind it is that we want to connect. We’re your mentors at the counseling center, so this helps us talk story with students and figure out what’s going on and how people are doing.”
Foster said that keeping the Pops and Positivity casual is intentional. Instead of hosting one large event in a single space, the peer mentors travel across campus so they can reach students who might not attend a formal program.
“We want to create more of a sense of belonging on campus,” Foster said. “Students can feel lonely, especially during exams or midterms. Pops and Positivity helps us show face, make connections, and remind students that we’re here.”
The mentors said one of the largest challenges the Counseling Center faces is visibility. Despite the range of free resources offered, many students are still unaware of where the center is located (Tredtin Hall, Room 201) or that peer mentoring is available.
“We always start by asking, ‘Do you know where we are?’ because a lot of people don’t,” Lacuesta said. “We offer counseling services with our licensed counselors, Leilani [Riahi] and Elisabeth [Mather], but we also have peer mentors students can talk to at a more casual, student-to-student level. We try to make ourselves approachable.”
In addition to Pops and Positivity, the counseling center holds monthly workshops designed to help students manage stress, build coping skills, and find community. Their most recent program, a Create an Anxiety Kit workshop, drew strong participation and positive reviews. The mentors hope these recurring Pops and Positivity will help students feel more comfortable seeking support long before academic or personal pressures become overwhelming.
Pops and Positivity, though simple in concept, has become one of the Counseling Center’s most recognized outreach efforts. Participation has grown each month.
“I think our first month was about 40 students,” Foster said. “Today felt closer to 50. And now when people see us walking around, they’re like, ‘You got the popsicles?’ It’s cool to see students recognizing us.”
Students have responded with warm enthusiasm, often offering gratitude not just for the treat, but for the genuine conversations. Senior women’s basketball player Ashley Holen said the Pops and Positivity helped students better understand who the counselors are and what they offer.
“I think this was a great event that gained exposure for the counselors,” Holen said.
While the mentors do keep informal counts of how many students they meet, they said their most meaningful measure of success is the engagement itself, being the smiles, the small conversations, and the returning students who recognize them from previous months. This week, they said, brought some of the strongest feedback yet.
“People say, ‘Thank you so much,’ even for something as simple as a popsicle,” Foster said. “It’s those little interactions that matter.”
The next Pops and Positivity is scheduled for Dec. 9. It will be the final Pops and Positivity before winter break, and peer mentors encourage students to stop by, grab a popsicle, and get to know the counseling team.