Linda Clement, student affairs vice president
The university’s mental health services will see $5 million of funding over the next 10 years to hire new staff members and better respond to increasing student demand.
The health and counseling centers jointly requested the money, all of which the university granted and will deliver in increments of $500,000 per year for 10 years. Its primary purpose is to fund three new counseling psychologist positions in the counseling center and 1.5 psychiatrist positions in the mental health unit within the health center, said Linda Clement, student affairs vice president.
“Demand has been ever-increasing and I don’t see any signs that that’s going to stop,” Clement said. “We feel just terrific about this, and we’re thrilled about what it means for services to students — that’s the primary goal here.”
The money comes from a donation to the university that was not earmarked for any specific purpose, leaving the university’s vice presidents with the option to propose multiple projects. Clement asked Mental Health Director Marta Hopkinson and Counseling Center Director Sharon Kirkland-Gordon to prepare a proposal to secure money that has long been sought by the programs.
University President Wallace Loh, who ultimately decided where the money would be allocated, said recent gun violence — especially February’s off-campus shooting in which graduate student Dayvon Maurice Green, who suffered from mental illness for at least a year, shot two of his roommates, killing one before taking his own life — prompted him to award the health and counseling centers the money.
“It’s not just that students need help,” Loh said. “We know elsewhere in the country if people don’t get mental health treatment, bad things can happen — not all the time, but there are enough violent acts committed by people who need mental health services. When you compare that with the need for more student aid, at least in my mind, the whole issue of student safety comes up ahead of financial need at this time.”
Loh added the $500,000 per year will have a more significant impact on hiring new psychologists than if it were spread across 37,000 students for financial aid, another proposal raised in discussions about the donation.
The funds are available beginning July 1, Clement said, meaning the centers will not receive new staff members before that date. The university has already begun its search for a new counseling psychologist and will now be able to extend offers to more people than it had originally planned, she added.
The health center staff includes four psychotherapists, two staff psychiatrists and the equivalent of 7.5 full-time psychiatrists and clinical social workers. Meanwhile, the counseling center has 10 full-time and four part-time psychologists and counselors, four doctoral psychology interns and externs, and practicum students.
Although students and officials have requested more funding for years, those efforts were ramped up after several mass shootings across the country — most notably December’s shooting at Connecticut’s Sandy Hook Elementary School that left 20 children, six adults and the gunman dead — reignited national gun control and mental health discussions. Adam Lanza, Sandy Hook’s gunman, suffered from mental illness, as did James Holmes, who opened fire on a movie theater in Aurora, Colo., killing 12 people and injuring 58.
Many lawmakers, school officials and citizens have since spoken about the need for increased mental health services nationwide, while emphasizing that need extends far beyond a few rare instances of violence.
“There has been an increase in demand not only on our campus, but on campuses nationwide,” Kirkland-Gordon said.
The Student Government Association, Active Minds and Get Help UMD — through which students share their stories and struggles with getting help on the campus — have been pushing for increased funding for mental health services along with other student groups and initiatives. Those efforts helped administrators secure all the money they requested, Hopkinson said.
“This shows the responsiveness of the university administration to this extremely important issue,” SGA President Samantha Zwerling said. “They are responding to students’ suffering and making sure that those students have access to the help they need.”
The additional funding is the largest infusion of new resources in student affairs in at least a dozen years, Clement said. The health and counseling centers especially, she said, haven’t received new resources in years.
“It’s a great first step to change in other things, such as making students more aware of places on campus that can help them,” said Jen Robinson, Active Minds president. “It could even potentially save lives.”
But demand for these services won’t slow down anytime soon, Clement said, meaning there is always more the university can do to continue improving its services.
“I don’t see this need going away,” she said. “Parents very much want students to seek help, and they want it to be on campus, so I don’t think we’re ever going to be in a position where we do everything we want to do or see everyone we want to see. Our eyes are always out to supplement support in those areas.”
