Enhancing Student Wellness: State-Led Initiatives and Insights

Title: Lessons from the Wellness Blueprint Convening: Cultivating Foundations for Statewide Student Mental Health Policy

Source: State Higher Education Executive Officers Association (SHEEO) and The Jed Foundation

Author: Sakshee Chawla

SHEEO and The Jed Foundation, with support from the Lumina Foundation, have created a learning community to develop and implement policy recommendations for enhancing student mental health and wellness. Arizona, Louisiana, Oregon, Pennsylvania, and Texas received planning grants to participate in the Student Mental Health and Wellness Learning Community for 2023-2024.

A new white paper presents insights from the Wellness Blueprint convening, where these states showcased their initiatives and discussed future directions for student well-being.

Key recommendations on student wellness include:

Emphasizing basic needs as foundational to advancing mental health: For example, the Arizona Board of Regents is enhancing its existing Students Food and Housing Insecurity Taskforce. Meanwhile, the Pennsylvania Department of Education has developed the PA MASLOW model, inspired by Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs, to identify and prioritize essential requirements. The PA MASLOW Checklist and Fifty States MASLOW Checklist support asset mapping, complemented by the “You Good?” anti-stigma campaign.

Building partnerships for cross-section collaboration: For example, the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board’s approach to student mental health blends philanthropic funding with technical expertise. This approach enables colleges and universities to access additional financial resources, innovative strategies, and specialized knowledge that are tailored to the Texas context, thereby enhancing their overall impact.

Centering marginalized voices to develop culturally competent services for equitable access: The Oregon Higher Education Coordinating Commission prioritized marginalized voices in forming its advisory board, which focuses on addressing the mental health needs of historically underserved student groups, including students of color and low-income students. Louisiana supports these groups through targeted marketing and outreach campaigns, such as collaboration with on-campus multicultural and LGBTQ+ centers to emphasize the inclusivity of mental health services.

Identifying student challenges and needs to develop policy: For example, Pennsylvania conducted a comprehensive review of policies and programs related to student mental health across its state higher education institutions.

Using data to uncover barriers and drive policy: While the Texas learning community utilizes surveys from organizations like The Hope Center and the Healthy Minds Study, Oregon uses data from its Youth Suicide Intervention and Prevention Plan and Adult Suicide Intervention and Prevention Plan, all of which aim to uncover and address barriers to treatment.

Driving student mental health initiatives through champions: Arizona Governor Katie Hobbs highlighted student mental health in the “Arizona for Everyone” agenda, focusing on education, safe schools, housing, and health care. In Louisiana, leaders like Commissioner of Higher Education Kim Hunter Reed have championed mental health funding and sustainable support systems during legislative sessions.

Creating sustainable, scalable, and well-funded suports: Both Arizona and Louisiana leverage partnerships to secure continuous funding and support for mental health services.

Click here to read the full white paper.

—Nguyen DH Nguyen