Mental Health in College 

Hillary Clinton has a plan to improve mental health services for college students. I’m all for it but there is something else we can do to help underrepresented students to avoid depression and anxiety. We need to make sure that tenure lines aren’t closed down and students are taught by full-time permanent scholars instead of part-time transient instructors.

An example. An enormous number of African American students who enter our science programs drop out within the first 2 years. Things are especially bad in pure sciences where there is maybe 1 black graduate in years and years. 

These students could be retained in the programs if they had access to mentors, i.e. academics who are available to guide them through the programs and help them navigate the areas where they might lack preparation. These are the students who need just a little bit of assistance from somebody who cares and has time and resources to assist them. And that assistance can’t be sporadic. 

Obviously, it isn’t helping students to avoid stress and sadness when they have to drop out because they feel that these fields of knowledge are not accessible to them. 

I’m reviewing the work of one such department, and it’s scary to see how the destruction of tenure lines always comes accompanied by the plummeting rates of graduation of underrepresented groups. 

The best thing is to address the causes and not just treat the symptoms. I’m not blaming any of this on Hillary, obviously. But it’s something to keep in mind as we talk about mental health on campus.