MC receives grant to support mental health and substance abuse services on campus
Sept. 21, 2021
Maryville College has received a $306,000 grant from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), a branch of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.
The three-year grant, which will begin Sept. 30, is titled “Maryville College’s First StEPS Project: Mental Health and Other Drugs (AOD) Education, Prevention, and Support Services for Students.”
The goals of the grant include: strengthening support for Maryville College (MC) students at-risk for mental illness and substance use disorders (SUDs) that can negatively impact student success; preventing mental health and SUDs within the student body; promoting help-seeking behaviors and reducing stigma associated with mental health and SUDS; improving the identification and treatment of at-risk MC students to ensure academic goal completion; and mobilizing a multidisciplinary network of internal and external partners to assist in meeting these goals.
This project will include a focus on first-generation and Pell-eligible students, as research shows that first-generation students may not report suicidal ideations as readily as their peers, and lower income is associated with suicide attempts, according to the grant proposal. Additionally, responses to a recent nationally normed mental health survey implemented on campus indicate the need for more mental health-related support services.
The grant will enable Maryville College “to unify and focus campus prevention efforts while expanding its network infrastructure with community resources to strengthen support for students on- and off-campus,” the grant proposal states. Community partners include emergency services entities who assist the campus community when students are in crisis; Blount Memorial Hospital and emergency room, which provide emergency, crisis and extended care for students in need; the community Mobile Crisis Unit, which makes determinations about student need for involuntary psychiatric support; the McNabb Center for outpatient services and clinical support beyond the capability of the campus; and the Tennessee Suicide Prevention Network for training and professional development.
“Student mental health continues to garner national attention as a barrier to post-secondary student success, which is why we were motivated to apply for this grant and thrilled to receive the award to further strengthen our support for students over the coming years,” said Dr. Melanie Tucker, vice president and dean of students at Maryville College. Tucker also serves as the College’s chief diversity officer.
Claudia Werner, director of counseling at Maryville College, is the project director. The grant will allow for the College to hire a clinician to serve as the First StEPS Coordinator, who will report to Werner and be responsible for organizing and implementing the day-to-day activities of the project. This includes organizing suicide prevention and substance use prevention activities on-campus, including gatekeeper trainings; scheduling activities and meetings with internal and external stakeholders; developing, planning and implementing suicide awareness and stigma reduction campaigns; and gathering and tracking project data.
“Adding another clinician to our Counseling Center furthers the College’s capacity to meet the diverse and varied needs that our contemporary student body bring to campus each and every day, and increases our ability to positively impact the lives of our students,” Tucker said.