CSCU Announces Expanded Mental Health Options For Community College Students

Hartford, CT — Connecticut State Colleges and Universities (CSCU) President Terrence Cheng today announced that, beginning in the fall 2021 semester, students at Connecticut’s community colleges will have access to free, 24/7, telehealth options to provide health and counseling services. Through a partnership with the telehealth company TimelyMD, students will have the opportunity to connect, any time, from anywhere, with clinicians and providers specifically trained to meet the needs of the community college population.

“Access to health services – and particularly mental health services – has long been a major challenge for too many community college students,” President Cheng said. “By utilizing telehealth technology, students will now have the opportunity to easily and safely get the care they need from practitioners with specific expertise on meeting the unique needs of college students. This is a major expansion of mental health services, and it is sure to make the college experience more manageable for the students we serve.”

“In recent years, the demand for student mental health supports has increased dramatically,” Connecticut State Community College Interim President David Levinson said. “We have taken some very important steps, including partnerships with local providers. However, this is the largest systemic investment to date and will provide much-needed access to critical health care services to all of our students.”

Angelo Simoni, CSCU’s Senior Executive Director for Student Relations indicates the two-year agreement between CSCU and TimelyMD entitles every Connecticut community college student to unlimited access to TalkNow, an on-demand mental health support system, unlimited health consultations, as well as 12 scheduled individual counseling sessions per year. The two-year annual contract costs $659,223 and is funded with federal COVID-19 relief money. “Our institutions are very excited to begin partnering with TimelyMD this fall to help address the mental health effects from COVID-19 on our students across our 12 campuses,” Simoni said.

CSCU expects to formally launch the service for students at the start of the semester. To learn more about TimelyMD, visit timely.md/for-schools/.

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For Immediate Release, August 23, 2021
Contact: Leigh Appleby
[email protected]

860-818-1824