Univ. Announces New Mental Health Award

The University Student Health Coordinating Board (USHCB) is turning to students in an effort to find ways to improve mental health care on campus.

The board has created a new award--the Vincent Prize--to be awarded to students who offer "innovative" solutions to mental health problems.

The award comes as one of a series of initiatives resulting from a study undertaken by the Office of the Provost last year that called for the University to increase the accessibility of mental health treatment.

The study reported that many students might avoid seeking mental care for fear of the stigma attached, an especially serious problem during college years when "serious and potentially disabling psychiatric conditions" are likely to occur.

"[The prize] is a chance for students to speak out about what they think needs to be done," said Marsha Semuels, an assistant provost who oversees the USHCB.

The board will award up to three $1,500 prizes in April for proposals that can be implemented and reasonably accomplished within a practical timeframe.

In the past year, the Office of the Provost and the USHCB have sponsored several initiatives to increase the accessibility of mental health care, including a brochure about student depression to be distributed to Faculty members, as well as a discussion and lecture series called "Caring for the Harvard Community."

Semuels stressed that the Vincent Prize provides a unique opportunity for students to impact campus life.

"It's a chance for recognition, and also a chance to see a proposal implemented," she said.

Jeremy P. Waletzky, a clinical professor of psychiatry and behavioral sciences at George Washington University, donated money for the award following a discussion on student depression with Kay R. Jamison, a professor of psychiatry at the Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine and the keynote speaker for USHCB's "Caring for the Harvard Community" initiative.

Waletzky said he was impressed by the USHCB programs and decided Harvard would be the "ideal place" to start a student mental health initiative.

If the award is successful, it will be offered again in years to come and may lead to further joint health initiatives with students.

"We're always trying to think of ways to involve students," Semuels said.

The award was named for Edna St. Vincent Mallay and Vincent van Gogh, both of whom suffered from depressive illness.