Meet Students Where They Are
May is Mental Health Awareness Month. Make sure your students know they are more than enough. Use the resources from The Jed Foundation (JED), Active Minds, Born This Way Foundation, and NAMI to help your campus advocate for better access to mental health resources all year round.

10 Best Practices for Supporting Student Mental Health
A recent nationwide survey found nearly 60% of Gen Z college students have received mental health care before arriving on campus – during their K-12 years.
While the campus mental health crisis for students of all ages and demographics is gaining a growing amount of attention from educators, government leaders, and clinicians, it was an issue long before COVID acted as an accelerant. Many college and university leaders already have made significant investments in creating a connected system of care that improves student outcomes by supporting student mental health.
According to an annual survey by Inside Higher Ed, about two-thirds of presidents (65%) indicate that they plan to increase their institution’s capacity to meet the mental health needs of students, staff, and faculty members.
To support institutional efforts to support student well-being and success, we’ve put together the 10 best practices that are common among colleges and universities that comprehensively address student mental health.
“By thoughtfully adopting a framework that promotes positive physical and mental health, we are prioritizing the whole-student experience and emphasizing an environment of emotional balance, creating community and purpose, and supporting financial, physical, and social well-being. We want to create a campus culture of resilience, and demonstrate our commitment to student success by empowering students to take actionable steps forward in their journey to wellness.”
Jon Dooley
Vice President for Student Life
Elon University
“We have requested that there are some therapists of color that look like our students so that it could help to address the stigma around mental health and make our students a little bit more comfortable with accessing and utilizing the services. Even down to the marketing — we specifically requested that the images and promotion have persons of color to represent different cultures … And so we are just happy that we’re able to meet their needs in this way, especially on an HBCU campus.”
Tierra Parsons
Director of Counseling Services
Johnson C. Smith University
“We have to have a holistic approach to meeting these students’ needs, especially post-pandemic in which our world got really turned upside down. In order for us to be effective, we need to make sure we’re looking at the whole student, we’re looking at the whole situation and identifying how we can help with each of those pieces. The more pieces we can put into place the better we can be able to support them.”
Jerrod Hinders
Counseling Center Coordinator
Amarillo College
“As a rural community in Colorado, TimelyCare can really help students connect with someone to help them talk through their problems or a mental health crisis where some physical service in the Valley may not be available to them. Whether that’s because their health insurance doesn’t provide coverage for that provider, or if it’s because there just isn’t appointment availability because there’s a lot of people trying to see the very limited counselors … having that resource available is critical. And being able to connect any time of the day, at the click of a button, is truly incredible.”
Sam Micka
Assistant Professor of Computer Science
Western Colorado University
“The health and well-being of our students is a top priority for me and our university as a whole. The ability to give our students 24/7 access to the mental health care they need will be a significant supplement to the in-person services available on our campuses. When students have the resources they need to best manage their health, they are better positioned for a successful experience at IU.”
Pamela Whitten
President
Indiana University
“A year ago, retention of counselors was huge, a huge problem. We were losing six to seven counselors a year. Having access to TimelyCare to help what we’re doing, our ability to retain our counselors has improved significantly … it has really helped us with retention, and it’s really helped morale.”
Ellie Sturgis
Director of Cook Counseling Center
Virginia Tech
“[TimelyCare, formerly TimelyMD] helps us in reaching a broader group of students that we might not be reaching through our traditional counseling services. We have been surveying students to get a sense of their experience … I’ve been struck by the number of students who said if we didn’t have TimelyCare in place, they wouldn’t have reached out.”
Kevin Shollenberger
Vice Provost for Student Health and Well-being
Johns Hopkins University
“Having the more informal ability to share what you’re going through without it being an appointment with a counselor is huge. With the Peer Community feature [in TimelyCare], I think people enjoy getting stuff off of their chest and sharing it anonymously. Reading and responding to the posts, even giving little responses like, ‘you’re not alone,’ helps me in my own life and feeling comfortable to say, ‘I think I’m ready to talk with someone.’ Whether they take that next step or not is up to them, and they know the option is always available through TimelyCare.”
Jillian Allen
Active Minds Student Leader
University of Virginia
“There is no greater priority than the health and safety of our students and we recognize the additional pressures our student-athletes face in addition to their academic workloads. TimelyCare’s ease of use, convenience, and immediacy make it easier than ever for our students to get on-demand support.”
Dr. Jaime Gordon
Director of Athletics
Morehead State University
“Prevention is worth every bit of upfront work that you can manage on your campus, which includes having a comprehensive toolbox of resources for students to support their own mental health, which will inevitably turn into students supporting each other. Being understood in a crisis is so significant – it is critical to prepare, which includes knowing your campus, knowing what your students’ needs are, and responding to current events accordingly.”
Hillary Jones
Director of Acute Mental Health Care, Crisis Response, and Care Management
Case Western Reserve University
Mental Health Awareness Month
At TimelyCare, we are committed to improving the health and well-being of college students and empowering them to thrive in all aspects of their lives. A key aspect of helping students thrive is supporting their mental health. That’s why we support the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) call that students are More than Enough.
A student mental health crisis continues to affect colleges and universities across the country. It’s more critical than ever to offer the right resources and support for mental and emotional health.
Join the Mental Health Conversation @ TimelyCare

The Impact of End-of-Semester Stress on Student Health
Jacki Craft, Chief People Officer
College students are often overwhelmed with a variety of stressors at the end of a semester. And TimelyCare’s research suggests that rates of seeking care for stress, anxiety, and depression increase as the semester winds down. How does end-of-semester stress impact student health, and what can higher education leaders do to help students destress?

The Evolution of the Mental Health Conversation
Dr. Andrew Kim, Director of Psychiatry
Though researchers have tracked significant increases in anxiety and depression during the COVID-19 pandemic, numbers show a continuation of a troubling trend rather than a singular spike. College students are also juggling an array of stressors, but what’s driving this change in the mental health conversation on college campuses?

The Impact of Representation in Mental Health Care
Nassim Bickham, VP of Care Transformation
Colleges and universities are more diverse than ever. Forty-five percent of undergraduate students identify as people of color. And yet, healthcare disparities continue to exist across college campuses in the U.S. What happens when students can’t find healthcare providers who resemble them, their beliefs, and their culture?
Looking for More Resources on Student Mental Health?
National Mental Health Awareness Month Resources
Active Minds
Active Minds is the nation’s leading nonprofit organization promoting mental health awareness and education for young adults. The organization is dedicated to ending the silence and changing the culture around mental health for everyone. Active Minds offers ways to talk about mental health.
The Jed Foundation (JED)
The Jed Foundation is a nonprofit that protects emotional health and prevents suicide for our nation’s teens and young adults, giving them the skills and support they need to thrive today…and tomorrow. Browse JED’s Mental Health Awareness Month resources to find ways to connect with others and get connected to the mental health care you need and deserve.Born This Way Foundation
The Be There Certificate, created by Jack.org in partnership with Born This Way Foundation, is a free, self-paced learning experience designed to increase mental health literacy and provide you with the knowledge, skills, and confidence needed to safely support anyone who may be struggling with their mental health.NAMI
The National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) is the nation’s leading voice on mental health and works in your community to raise awareness and provide support and education that was not previously available to those in need. Visit their website to find resources on this year’s theme: More Than Enough.
Your Students Are More Than Enough
A modern virtual care platform starts with technology students want to use. The TimelyCare platform is built for digital natives, with appointment-based and self-care resources for mental and emotional health, medical care, psychiatric support, and health coaching—all available through phone, video, or video chat.
Student
Stony Brook University
“My TimelyCare provider was so amazing. I felt that she really listened to me and gave me amazing advice despite talking to her for the first time. I was so filled with anxiety and doubt prior to my visit, but after I felt so much better and even a little bit empowered to tackle my situation. I couldn’t be more thankful for this service.”
Student
Porterville College
“I really enjoy how smooth, easy, and convenient it was to use this app. I found myself sick during finals and with limited time to make a visit to my doctor. I was able to download the app, talk to the doctor, and get my meds within a little over an hour. Great experience.”
Student
Coastal Carolina University
“I love the provider I am seeing, and I love the convenience/reliability.”
Student
Collin College
“I’m a mom, a full-time student … TimelyCare really helped, because medical bills can set you back a lot financially. I didn’t have to pay out of pocket for anything. What worked best for me was the convenience of it.”
Student
Johns Hopkins University
“The instant connection is the best—because when you’re having a problem, you want to talk to someone now versus having to wait and losing the ability to process, or letting things build up.”
Student
Claremont McKenna College
“TimelyCare saved me.”





