The Minnesota State education system has announced a partnership with Mantra Health to provide student mental health support. Mantra is a 24/7 online resource that provides students in higher education institutions with free, accessible mental health and wellness solutions.

Mantra currently partners with 125 college and university campuses, and serves over 900,000 students. It specifically supports students with self-guided wellness courses, one-on-one coaching, therapy, psychiatry, on-demand support, 24/7 crisis support, intensive outpatient programming and other wellness methods.

Minnesota State includes 26 community and technical colleges, and seven state universities serving approximately 270,000 students across the state. It’s also the fourth-largest system of two-year colleges and four-year universities in the country.

“Our students face challenges that make progress towards their academic goals difficult including mental health and basic needs support. Minnesota State is committed to helping them navigate their lives and reach their education goals,” Associate Vice Chancellor of Student Affairs and Enrollment Management for Minnesota State Paul Shepherd said in a release. “This partnership with Mantra is an important piece of that commitment.”

Students enrolled in at least one credit at a Minnesota State college or university can now access the mental health platform.

Mantra is designed to work alongside existing counseling services, and also offers mental health education and training for faculty.

“By working closely with Minnesota State and each institution, we’re excited to integrate our program into every step of the student journey, from freshman orientation through graduation, ensuring students receive high-quality care whenever and wherever they need it,” CEO of Mantra Health Matt Kennedy said.

According to a press release sent from Minnesota State, the Minnesota Legislature recognized the ongoing need for student support services and appropriated the funds to make the partnership possible.

“The investment reflects the state’s commitment to equipping the colleges and universities of Minnesota State with the resources needed to support student well-being, and its understanding that mental health is a critical factor in student success and retention,” the release states.

Mental health continues to be considered a widespread concern among students, serving as the main cause for the partnership.

According to a 2024 Student Basic Needs Annual Report conducted by the Minnesota Office of Higher Education, about 40% of Minnesota undergraduate students experience basic need insecurity, including access to mental healthcare.

“Compared to the general adult population in the U.S., college students are at higher risk for experiencing mental health challenges including loneliness, suicidal ideation, the emergence of chronic mental health conditions, and problems associated with binge drinking behavior,” the report states. “The need for increased campus support for students dealing with emergent or chronic mental health concerns has been an area of concern … Since before the 2020 onset of the COVID-19 pandemic. The pandemic, however, has exacerbated these challenges.”

Southwest Minnesota State University currently partners with Mantra, and has seen it being used well amongst its students.

“That was a game changer for SMSU, Mantra Health … For a student who needs an appointment, they had to wait two weeks before this,” SMSU President Kumara Jayasuriya told the Independent in January. “That really changed the dynamics on campus.”

Healthy Minds Network is an annual web-based survey that gathers data directly from college and university students, and surveyed nearly 105,000 students from across 196 colleges and universities for its 2023-24 report.

According to the most recent data discovered, 38% of college students said they experience depression, 36% said they sought out mental health therapy over the year, 34% experience anxiety, and 50% received a lifetime diagnosis of a mental disorder.

77% of students surveyed also revealed they felt that emotional or mental difficulties did cause academic impairments or hurt their education performance over a four week period.

“For a student, a mental health crisis isn’t always going to occur between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m. on a weekday … It could well be, probably more likely, in the early hours on a Saturday morning,” Minnesota State Chancellor Scott Olson told the Independent in January. “The beauty of this Mantra telemedicine is, it’s a live human being you’re interacting with, but it’s 24/7, 365 (days). It’s there for our students when the student needs it.”

Mantra uses licensed mental health professionals in its services, which students can access online and through a digital app.