NIU’s annual Wellness Fair will take place from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Wednesday, March 28, in the Duke Ellington Ballroom and Capitol Room of the Holmes Student Center.
Sponsored by the Employee Assistance Program and Recreation Services, the fair provides information regarding all aspects of health and overall well-being for employees, students, retirees and members of the community.
In honor of this year’s “Living in Balance” theme, visitors can learn about all dimensions of wellness: emotional, environmental, financial, intellectual, occupational, physical, social and spiritual. Information includes everything from body fat, diet and exercise to listening skills, meditation and yoga.
Free assessments and screenings, including blood pressure and cholesterol, also are offered. (To schedule a cholesterol screening, visit the Health Services table in Row 2 of the ballroom.)
Lunches are available for purchase from 11 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. in the Capitol Room.
“This is the 20th year of collaboration between the Employee Assistance Program and Recreation Services. It is an event that brings together nearly 100 campus and community wellness offices and service providers,” said Deborah Haliczer, director of employee relations in Human Resource Services.
“Participants can learn about eye health, acupuncture, vegetarian lifestyles, heart health, healthy relationships or many other topics,” Haliczer added. “All can have their blood pressure checked, sign up for health screenings, learn some tips on managing stress or have a chair massage.”
Each year’s fair typically attracts around 1,500 faculty, staff and students who want to learn more about healthy practices and health-enhancing ideas.
Those include functional movement screenings that detect unbalanced movement patterns that can put people at risk of injury, nutritional advice from a registered dietitian and information on skin care, dental health and good posture.
“We approach wellness in a holistic manner by offering resources for all different aspects of wellness,” said Eric Appiah, assistant director of fitness and wellness at the Student Recreation Center.
“We hope that employees leave the wellness fair learning more about the various elements of wellness and how to integrate wellness in their own lives. We want to equip students, faculty, and staff with the necessary tools to improve their health and wellness.”
New services and service providers are brought each year to the event, which has grown from a small fair on the basketball court of the Rec Center to one that fills the ballroom and Capitol Room.
“Each year, we hear that participants have learned something that produces a change in their habits, or alerts them to the need to attend to a health risk,” Haliczer said.
“And the Health and Wellness Fair is a fun way to take a break, take a walk and learn something new while getting together with other members of the NIU community. It is one way the university demonstrates support for its students, faculty and staff.”
Operating Staff employees can attend without loss of wages or the use of vacation or sick time. Operating Staff employees should not be required to use their lunch hour or rest periods (breaks) to attend this event.
The decision to release any Operating Staff employee to attend this event is at the discretion of the employing supervisor and shall take into account the operational needs of the department. The Wellness Fair is a university-sponsored event and supervisors are encouraged to provide employees with the opportunity to participate.
Fairgoers also are encouraged to bring recyclable items.
At the east entrance of the ballroom, NIU’s Task Force on the Sustainable Campus Environment will collect cell phones, batteries, ink cartridges, light bulbs, pens and markers, compact discs, DVDs and their cases.
Members of the DeKalb Noon Lions Club will collect eye glasses, hearing aids, ink cartridges and cell phones at the west entrance of the ballroom.
For more information, call (815) 753-9191 or email employeeassistance@niu.edu.
