In a July 2024 study of students at universities and colleges and graduates, 65% of respondents reported having mental health issues like anxiety, stress, and depression. In addition, 76% of college students stated that the services for mental health provided by their universities and colleges influence their likelihood of earning an education.
Access to easy and comprehensive medical and mental health services in critical moments can save lives. The provision of resources that can help improve the retention of students is beneficial to both the health and financial well-being of the college and the local economy.
Despite the apparent necessity and compelling business case to fund students’ mental health and success resources, getting the funds needed isn’t always easy. However, if campus administrators explore different avenues for funding, they frequently find the funding required to implement these vital programs.
By combining federal, state, and local funds, and private contributions, the schools can develop an effective model for health initiatives. This is a review of each source of funding.
Private donations
Alumni, parents, and other community members frequently are in favor of seeing mental health services provided to students. They wish they had the same resources in their college time. The transition to adulthood can be a difficult period, and having support for anxiety, stress depression, stress, and other relationship issues can be a huge help to students as they navigate their education.
Parents, alumni as well as students are among the largest supporters of well-being and mental health initiatives. Private donors usually feel a strong connection to the cause of helping an upcoming generation, connecting to their struggles as students, and recollecting the lack of resources that were accessible during their collegiate experiences.
Higher education examples show the ways that private donations can increase the number of mental health resources on campus. Institutions such as Butler University, the University of New England, and the University of Texas have had successful fundraising programs to support student mental health services. In 2024, the Larry H. & Gail Miller Family Foundation announced a challenge grant of $850,000 to Southern Utah University to invigorate and stimulate donations and partnerships that will help support mental health programs that are available to students of all ages, regardless of whether they are on campus or via online. Elon University alumni Mark and Kim Tyson made a $3 million donation to their university to establish the HealthEU Center which will serve as a center that will focus on holistic health and wellness initiatives.
A grant from a donor Nass Mental Health Initiative donation for Syracuse University’s Martin J. Whitman School of Management helps “students who are seeking professional and personal growth at the intersection of mental health and business.” The program offered by this initiative tackles problems like balance between work and life stress, anxiety, and dealing with rejection and burning out.
If you’re contemplating the best time to conduct outreach for donors you should begin planning your campaign in May. Because of Mental Health Awareness Month and Mental Health Action Day, it’s an ideal time to begin an individual fundraising or crowdsourcing campaign for services for mental health.
Foundations
Many non-profit foundations like Jed Foundation (JED) and Active Minds are among the foundations that provide grants to Jed Foundation (JED) and Active Minds provide grants to universities and colleges seeking to establish or expand initiatives in the field of mental health. The American College Health Foundation’s (ACHF) Stephan D. Weiss PhD Mental Health Fund for Higher Education is a foundation that supports programs that enhance student mental well-being and retention. ACHF also offers an award called the College Well-Being Award to create or improve campus infrastructure to improve the health of students.
The Boris Lawrence Henson Foundation (BLHF) was founded by the actress Taraji P. Henson and her friend Tracie Jade Jenkins to reduce stigmatization of mental health issues within The Black community and to increase accessibility. in 2023 BLHF began to launch Self-Care Wellness Pods under their “Meeting You Where You Are’ initiative that provides services in places in which African Americans convene.
BLHF collaborated with Kate Spade New York to introduce SHECARE Wellness Pods that will bring awareness to more than 25,000. Black women who attend HBCU campuses. Alabama State University, Hampton University, as well as Bennett College, were among the first colleges to be awarded the SHECARE Wellness pods. These structures provide the resources of free therapy as well as support spaces, and programs designed to help women and girls.
Find the organizations that best match the mission of your organization and your goals for your wellness and health initiatives.
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Government programs
The search for federal grants can be started on grants.gov through a database with eligibility criteria. Grants such as those provided by The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) offer grants that are designed to improve the quality of mental health care services for students.
Universities and colleges across the country have also benefited from state funds to fund students’ mental health and success initiatives. This is the Ohio State University used a $2.5 million grant from the State of Ohio to offer teletherapy services that are specialized as well as academic accommodation support and other services for mental health and well-being and programs for students.
The University of North Carolina system 2022-27 Strategic Plan has identified improving the mental health of students as a top priority. In 2023 NC has announced $7.7 million worth of additional money to provide postsecondary institutions that provide additional mental health services.
The Michigan Sixty by 30 strategic plan seeks to increase the percentage of people who have a degree or certificate to 60 percent by 2030. The grant program will provide greater than $45,000 to increase student achievement at Michigan’s tribal and community colleges as well as universities.
Check out government programs like these that help fund programs for mental health and wellness that will help students achieve achievement. The Best Online Education Platform for Tech Capabilities.
Initiatives led by students
The importance of mental health is enough for students to engage on their campuses to increase access to services for support. Student leaders have played a key role in bringing 24/7 online healthcare to their campuses. They are the Associated Students of Diablo Valley College (ASDVC) located in California provides TimelyCare which provides mental and medical health care as well as the TalkNow service which provides scheduled counseling as well as psychotherapy.
Lake Washington Institute of Technology student government association members considered mental health to be a top priority and decided that they would not be waiting to see if funding from the state would be made available. They decided to tap into the reserve fund of the school to provide the ability to access free, 24 hours of virtual health and medical treatment. The student body later decided to increase the cost that would cover indefinitely the cost of the services.
The price of inaction
Nicholas Ladany, president of San Francisco Bay University wrote in an Inside Higher Ed opinion piece, “Providing the necessary resources for mental health the number of sessions, granting counselors competitive salaries and making mental wellness and health an integral part of university’s culture — is costly. But that’s an excuse to not provide students with the services they require. And, as with other effective practices in higher education that we think are vital like technology, the price of ignoring or maintaining the status quo will be more costly.”
If students are unable to turn because of lengthy waiting times, a lack of resources, or the stigma attached to health care, they are left in silence. At TimelyCare 52% of people who use our mental health services stated that they would not have taken action in the absence of our app accessible to them.
The cost of inaction or inadequate actions that don’t satisfy the needs of students is high. And the effect on retention and engagement is significant. The wait for the first appointment with a counselor is between one and two weeks in all counseling centers across institutions of all sizes according to the Association for University and College Counseling Center Directors‘ (AUCCCD) 2022-2023 Annual Survey. Furthermore, The State of Higher Education 2024 Report revealed that, of the college students who are currently enrolled one in five (22 percent) have thought of quitting because of mental health issues or emotional stress.
What are the responses of your school to this demand? Through a deeper look at the resources that fund universities and colleges to expand mental health resources and provide the most comprehensive resources for mental health easy.
More information on the funding available to support mental health as well as student success programs is accessible here or speak to one of the TimelyCare representatives now.
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