- $1 million in grants awarded to 11 Canadian colleges,
universities and CEGEPs to support mental health initiatives
- 200 Canadian schools participating in the Bell Let's Talk
Campus Campaign leading up to Bell Let's Talk Day on January
24
MONTRÉAL, Jan. 23,
2024 /CNW/ - Bell today announced that $1 million in grants from the Bell Let's Talk
Post-Secondary Fund have been awarded to 11 Canadian colleges,
universities and CEGEPs to support initiatives that align with
the National Standard of Canada for Mental Health
and Well-Being for Post-Secondary Students (the Standard) or
the Québec Action Plan on Student Mental Health for Higher
Education (Québec Action Plan).
According to Mental Health Research Canada, more than 1 in 2
Canadians who said they needed mental health support are not
getting the help they need. The statistics are alarming:
- More than 200 Canadians will attempt suicide everyday; twelve
will die
- The number of opioid overdose deaths in Canada is 21 per day
- 1 in 8 people have struggled with severe anxiety
For more information about these statistics visit
Bell.ca/LetsTalk
"I am very impressed at the calibre of the mental health support
programs so many Canadian schools' staff, faculty and student
bodies have implemented since 2021 with support from the Bell Let's
Talk Post-Secondary Fund. Not only do these programs improve access
to mental health support, they foster an inclusive on-campus
culture making it easier for students to get the help they need
during their post-secondary education."
- Mary Deacon, Chair
of Bell Let's Talk
"With the financial support of the Bell Let's Talk
Post-Secondary Fund, our Support and Enhance project to expand the
reach of mental health care is becoming a reality. This project
will improve operational efficiency at both the Psychology Health
Centre and the Students Peer Support Centre with additional
resources to expand operations from the Moncton campus to the Edmundston and Shippagan campuses over the next two years.
The creation of psycho-educational video capsules will also enable
the sharing of mental health resources to students regardless of
the campus they attend."
- Lisa Poirier, L.Psych., Acting Prime, Health and
Psychology Services, Université de Moncton
"This generous grant from Bell Let's Talk makes it possible for
Collège Ahuntsic to coordinate resources to assess the well-being
and mental health of its student community. We applaud Bell's
leadership in this important paradigm shift that aligns with the
Québec Action Plan. We also plan to collaborate with various
institutional partners and share our best practices with all
college and university network partners who so desire."
- Pascal
Gagné, Associate Director, Consulting Services, Student Affairs
Department, Collège Ahuntsic
"UWorkItOut UWin is a 6-week supervised exercise
intervention program shown to improve the mental and physical
health of university students. With the support from the Bell Let's
Talk Post-Secondary Fund, we will continue to deliver the personal
training and exercise counselling to students seeking support, thus
alleviating strain on the campus-counselling centre. The grant will
also allow the research team to renovate existing space thereby
providing students with a safe, comfortable, and inviting
environment to engage in exercise. We would like to thank Bell for
the generous contribution that will allow us to provide our Lancer
students with an exceptional university experience."
- Krista Chandler, PhD, Professor of Kinesiology,
The University of Windsor
"With the goal of enhancing student belonging, connection and
overall well-being, RRC Polytech will be launching an innovative
Peer Support program for students, co-designed by students. The
program will see a diverse group of students trained to provide
mental health support for their peers. Thanks to the investment
from the Bell Let's Talk Post-Secondary Fund, RRC Polytech will be
able to get this critical program off the ground and running, so
all students can thrive in their educational journeys and
lives."
- Breanna Sawatzky, Manager of Campus Well-Being,
Red River College Polytechnic
To see a complete list of the schools receiving grants and the
programs they plan to implement, please click here.
The Bell Let's Talk Post-Secondary Fund was launched in
2021 to support Canadian colleges and universities in implementing
the Standard, the creation of which Bell, The Rossy Family
Foundation and RBC had enabled with a joint $1 million donation in 2018, working in
partnership with the Canadian Standards Association. Since then,
the Fund has awarded over $6 million
in grants to Canadian post-secondary institutions,
starting with more than $3
million in initial grants to over 125 schools in early
2021. These funds helped enhance mental health programs on campuses
across the country, firmly establishing the Standard and the Québec
Action Plan, and laying the foundation for future initiatives.
Going forward, schools looking for future funding are encouraged to
apply through the Community Fund, which will begin accepting 2024
applications this week.
"Post secondary institutions are committed to supporting the
mental health and well being of their students to achieve student
success. Bell Let's Talk has been proud to support these
institutions in their efforts. A special thank you to our student
mental health advisory committee for sharing their guidance and
advice about the sector and student mental health in our selection
of grant recipients."
- Mary Deacon, Chair
of Bell Let's Talk
Bell Let's Talk 2024 Campus
Campaign
Two hundred Canadian colleges and universities are hosting
virtual and in-person mental health engagement events on campus
this January 24. This includes a collaboration with food
services Chartwells aimed at increasing conversation and action
while raising funds to support on-campus mental health programs and
services. Chartwells' partner schools will offer specialty
give-back items for purchase with proceeds going to support student
mental health on campus. In addition to campus activities, hundreds
of student-athletes from sports teams coast to coast are coming
together to support mental health at more than 190 varsity and
collegiate games throughout January.
To see a complete list of participating colleges, universities
and CEGEPs, please click here.
Let's create real change. Take
action on Bell Let's Talk Day and all year long!
On January 24 and every day
throughout the year, we can all take meaningful action to create
change. Let's create real change asks everyone to play a role and
provides practical examples of ways to create change in our homes,
schools, workplaces and communities. Here are some actions we can
all take:
- Choose a mental health organization to learn about or
support
- Help a friend struggling with their mental health by
learning how to support them
- Ask about how your school, workplace or community is
creating change for mental health
- Nurture your own well-being by practicing and learning
mental health strategies
- Get involved in a mental health initiative or organize
an event to support mental health
- Engage in conversations about mental health to fight
stigma
Visit Bell.ca/LetsTalk for more ideas and share your
actions using #BellLetsTalk and help inspire others to join the
movement.
About Bell Let's Talk
The largest-ever corporate commitment to mental health in
Canada, Bell Let's Talk is focused
on 4 key action pillars – Anti-stigma, Care and Access, Research
and Workplace Leadership – and is part of Bell for Better. Since
its launch in 2010, Bell Let's Talk has partnered with more than
1,500 organizations providing mental health services throughout
Canada, including hospitals, universities, local community service
providers and other care and research organizations. To learn more,
please visit Bell.ca/LetsTalk.
Media inquiries:
media@bell.ca
@Bell_LetsTalk
SOURCE Bell Canada