Organization: College Visions (CV)

Location: Providence, RI

Programming Summary

College Visions (CV) provides college access and success services to low-income, first-generation students in Rhode Island. In their college access programs, students receive individualized college coaching, emergency grant funding, access to college knowledge workshops, financial aid application support, on and off-campus visits, parent engagement opportunities, and other programming that builds community and addresses overall student well-being. The College Success Program provides individualized college support, emergency grant funding, transfer coaching, career mentorship, and access to local resources.

Demographics

CV supports low-income, first-generation students in Rhode Island. They serve approximately 400 high school and college students each year through their college access and college success programs.

To date, 95% of CV students persist to their second year of college and 71% of CV students graduate college within six years. Most of their students are Black, Latino/a, or Afro-Latino and attend predominantly white institutions. Their current cohorts have a median family income of $25,900 and CV's average Expected Family Contribution (EFC) is $0. CV students have reported they face many financial, academic, social, and mental health challenges as they pursue higher education. 

Identifying Programmatic Needs

What were the main needs identified in your initial assessments?

• CV lacked internal protocols for reporting, communicating, and providing guidance to staff for concerns and responding to crises
• Developing a more robust student mental health programming and resources 

Implementation of Strategies and Activities

What were the key activities undertaken during the project?

• Strengthen mental health support for CV scholars
• Increase awareness and knowledge of mental health issues and services among CV scholars and staff

Key activities undertaken during the project were staff training, developing protocols, developing physical and digital resources for students, and hosting workshops and events that support student mental health, many of which are outlined above. Those activities include mental health first-aid training for all program staff, a mid-year refresher, developing CV’s mental health crisis response plan, creating a CV resources doc for Rhode Island mental health services, hosting mental health workshops, sharing resources with students, and events giving students the opportunities to practice self-care, assess their mental health, and have fun.

Other activities included/will include:

• Establish internal guidelines and procedures to address mental health crises among CV students within a year.
• CV successfully developed a mental health crisis plan for staff that includes strategies for prevention, addressing a crisis, and a post-crisis plan
• Developed a CV RI Mental Health Resources document for staff and student use
• 100% of program staff were Youth Mental Health First-Aid Certified within three months of employment at CV
• 90% of CV staff attended the Mental Health First-Aid mid-year refresher
• Updated CV College Success Coaching training to include content around trauma-informed advising content
• Develop mental health training and programming for both CV students and staff and implement them within a year.
• CV partnered with a licensed independent clinical social worker to provide a more robust Mental Health Workshop for high school and college students. This year's workshop focused on stress management and encouraging help-seeking behaviors and when to reach out for help.
• 100% of students who attended the College Visions Mental Health Workshop or engaged in our mental-health-related activities reported a greater awareness of mental health, help-seeking behaviors, and resources available to them.
• Hosted an overnight retreat for about 20 high school and college students that included stress-reducing activities, community-building activities, panel discussions about the transition to college, and fun games.
• 91% of CV college students who completed end-of-semester surveys reported having learned strategies and resources to help them when they are stressed.
• CV incorporated mental health assessment questions on its college student mid-year and end-year surveys. About five students reported mental health concerns that were addressed by the CV college success advising staff.
• CV partnered with a local healthcare company to prepare and deliver 130 care packages each semester. The care packages included personalized notes from advisors, an encouraging quote from volunteers, essential care items, and snacks.
• CV introduced two new on-campus wellness and self-care workshops (college students), one new financial literacy (life-skill) workshop, and a college success boot camp helping students address their study habits and their anxieties transitioning to college. 

Outcomes and Impact

What have been the major outcomes of the project for your organization?

• This project provided CV with much-needed information about best practices around mental health and helped them set goals for the development of these practices within the organization.
• Although they will continue to test and tweak their mental health response plan, CV has clear mental health policies and procedures.
• CV has increased the number of mental health programming for current high school and college students.

How has this project impacted the support systems your organization has been able to create to support the mental health and wellness of students?

This project encouraged collaboration with outside partners to expand CV's mental health programming. This included current partners at Rhode Island College (one of the top higher education institutions where CV college students attend), contacts at the University of Rhode Island (where they held on-campus visits and workshops), and local organizations that directly address mental health concerns and crises (KidsLink RI, BHLink RI, Lifespan and Care New England hospitals, Clinica Esperanza, and local community health centers).

CV staff know who to reach out to when a mental health concern or crisis occurs.

How has this project impacted the mental health and wellness of students?

CV college students report a greater awareness of mental health resources in Rhode Island and how to manage and cope with stress. Besides information and resources, CV made a conscious effort to provide opportunities for students to de-stress, have fun, and examine their mental health throughout the program year. Although this work will continue, students recognize CV as not only a college access and success organization ensuring they enter and graduate from college but a place that cares about their overall health and well-being.

How has participating in this project impacted your organization?

As a result of this project, CV staff and students are equipped with the knowledge, resources, and tools to address mental health concerns and crises and who to contact with issues arise.