Ohio campuses face uncertainty as mental health funding expires

By Farah Siddiqi

By Lillion Alhassan / Broadcast version by Farah Siddiqi reporting for the Kent State NewsLab-Ohio News Connection Collaboration.

When federal emergency dollars poured into Ohio campuses during the pandemic, universities used the influx to expand mental health systems, among many other priorities. But as federal relief expires, those gains are becoming harder to sustain.

“Some institutions added more counselors or expanded other support services connected to basic-needs services," said Jessica Zavala, director of the Ohio Program for Campus Safety and Mental Health (OPCSMH). "And some of those expansions probably won’t go away overnight."

But Zavala, who coordinates mental-health strategy across Ohio’s higher-education system, said colleges are now weighing which programs they can realistically maintain without federal support.

College students face persistent mental health challenges. The 2023 Healthy Minds Study found that 41% of students screened positive for depression, 36% for an anxiety disorder and 13% had seriously considered suicide in the previous year.

The Association for University and College Counseling Center Directors reports that the average wait time for a therapy appointment is 9.2 days, and many campuses operate with counselor-to-student ratios around 1:1,600.

And since the pandemic began, financial stress — a longstanding predictor of student mental health — has intensified.

“There’s a lot still that’s still unknown about COVID’s impact,” Zavala said. “We can say that it had a significant impact on Ohio’s colleges and universities, and we still continue to see the fallout.”

Kent State University received about $120 million from the Higher Education Emergency Relief Fund, according to federal and university records. Most of that money went to student grants and pandemic operations. But some backed mental-health efforts, including temporary counseling staff, expanded telehealth, basic-needs aid and new wellness programming.

That funding was largely not replaced by other sources, however.

Zavala said campuses are reassessing services, with some forming new partnerships with community providers to try to preserve access.

“There are a lot of partnerships and ways that campuses and community organizations right now are partnering and working together to meet the needs of students,” she said.

Since 2010, the OPCSMH has given $600,000 to support more than 100 campus and community organizations, Zavala said. The organization relies on national evidence-based models, including the JED Foundation and Suicide Prevention Resource Center frameworks, to guide campus programming.

“We really believe in combining our comprehensive approach to suicide prevention and mental-health promotion… and keeping ourselves apprised of what’s going on in student trends,” Zavala said.

For Kent State, leaders say the challenge is not only sustaining clinical care but also preserving an ecosystem of well-being that students have come to rely on.

Meghan Factor-Page, associate director for Kent State of Well-Being, said the university has intentionally built a “strong network of mental health and well-being resources designed to meet students wherever they are, whether they need immediate support, ongoing care, or simple skill-building tools.”

Factor-Page said demand has shifted toward accessible, low-barrier tools — short sessions, drop-ins, online resources and skills-based events that help students manage stress before it escalates. A key entry point is the university’s Mental Health Resources page, which connects students to counseling, crisis support, workshops, peer groups and 24/7 emergency contacts.

These offerings follow a framework that integrates emotional, physical, social and environmental health.

“Our collaborations with campus partners ensure students experience coordinated, consistent support,” she said. “At every level, the goal is for students to feel supported, connected and empowered.”

These programs complement clinical care provided by Kent State’s campus-based mental-health services — including Counseling and Psychological Services (CAPS), the CARES team that supports students in distress, the campus Counseling Center and the university’s psychology clinic.

As statewide pressures rise, Factor-Page said maintaining accessibility and continuity will be critical for long-term student well-being.

The JED Foundation supports campuses in building comprehensive mental-health plans. Rachel Czerny, a JED Campus Advisor, said progress requires a shift in how campuses think about mental health altogether.

JED’s framework emphasizes that student well-being doesn't only happen in counseling rooms. Czerny said sustainable systems depend on coordination across academics, residence life, basic-needs services, peer support and crisis response — all the places where students experience stress or connection before they reach a clinician.

“There is no single, magic intervention or solution,” she said via e-mail. “To maintain sustainable mental health systems on campus, the focus should shift from a clinical-only model to a comprehensive, campus-wide approach that spans the full spectrum of prevention.”

Czerny said campuses must be prepared to meet students across the mental-health continuum, from thriving to distressed, and build systems designed to catch problems early.

“It is critical that proactive identification strategies are in place,” she said, pointing to staff training, regular screening and wrap-around support for students who are struggling.

With staffing shortages and high demand, partnerships have become an increasingly important tool. Czerny said campuses nationwide are turning to stepped-care models, which tailor care intensity to a student’s needs, telehealth services, mobile crisis teams, and formal agreements with community providers.

“When implemented with care, partnerships can extend the level of support provided, reduce wait times for appointments and match students with the appropriate level of care,” she said.

And despite financial uncertainty, she noted, the data offers hope. A decade-long JED analysis found that participating campuses saw measurable improvements: students were 10% less likely to experience suicidal ideation, 13% less likely to make a suicide plan and 25% less likely to attempt suicide.

As universities brace for another year of tight budgets, Czerny said the work must remain collaborative and comprehensive.

“There should be no wrong door on a college campus for a student seeking support,” she said.

This collaboration is produced in association with Media in the Public Interest and funded in part by the George Gund Foundation.