Well-Being

Mason partners with TimelyMD to improve student health and well-being

John Hollis — Mon, 24 Oct 2022 18:20:30 +0000

Mason partners with TimelyMD to improve student health and well-being John Hollis Mon, 10/24/2022 - 14:20

Mason and TimelyMD have partnered to improve student health and well-being. Graphic provided

George Mason University and TimelyMD have teamed up in an effort to improve student health and overall well-being with free and equitable access to mental health support.

The TimelyCare platform, which launched on October 17, provides a 24/7 virtual extension of campus counseling center resources to improve student well-being, engagement, and retention.

Using TimelyCare on a phone or other device, Mason students can now select from a wide-ranging menu of virtual care options from licensed counselors in all 50 states at no cost and without the hassle of traditional insurance.

Services included on-demand mental health and emotional support, appointment-based mental health counseling, psychiatric support, health coaching and digital self-care content in a hybrid model of care in collaboration with on-campus resources.

“TimelyCare is a great complement, and supplement, that enhances our existing university support services,” said Provost and Executive Vice President Mark Ginsberg. “Students now have more options when looking for help—wherever they are and whenever they have a need.” 

In addition, faculty and staff have access to support that empowers them to guide students to TimelyCare resources to help students achieve a sense of well-being, live healthier lifestyles and improve their mental health.

Benefits to students include convenient 24/7 care, reduced wait times, a diverse provider network and the peace of mind that comes from knowing that TimelyCare is a safe, secure, and HIPAA-compliant platform that follows campus-specific protocols to facilitate care coordination and follow-up to ensure continuity of care.

Student do not need insurance to access TimelyCare, and will have access to it until the last day of their graduating semester.

“The health and safety of our students is our top priority," said Rose Pascarell, Mason's vice president for University Life. “TimelyCare’s ease of use, convenience and immediacy make it easier than ever for our students to get the support they need, when they need it.” 

That’s just what Michelle Melo had in mind when the second-year master's student from Manila, Philippines, studying systems engineering first downloaded the TimelyCare app.

She said she found the platform “very easy” to use and of great value, especially to international students like herself who hail from cultures where there can be a stigma surrounding mental health issues.

“Having a resource to help our mental well-being will help us move away from the stigma that mental health is just a mood swing and actually assist us in receiving the help that we need,” Melo said.

The need for 24/7 access to high-quality care has never been more important. According to the American Council on Education, student mental health is the top concern of college and university presidents and is also the number one reason students leave college. A recent report by Gallup and the Lumina Foundation found that three out of four students in bachelor’s degrees programs who considered stopping out – stopping with the intention of returning to school – cited emotional stress as their reason.

Sixty percent of all students who have sought mental health support through TimelyCare said they would have done nothing if the service were not available, according to the company.

“Meeting the need for equitable, on-demand access to care is a critical challenge that extends beyond campus boundaries. TimelyCare allows colleges and universities like George Mason University to solve problems rather than just treat symptoms,” said Luke Hejl, TimelyMD CEO and co-founder. “Our mission at TimelyMD is to improve the health and well-being of college students by making virtual care accessible anytime, anywhere. Through TimelyCare, we are proud to deliver best-in-class health and well-being solutions to help students thrive.”

Founded in 2017, TimelyMD serves more than a million students at more than 200 campuses nationwide.

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Research says club sports are Mason’s untapped resource

Colleen Rich — Wed, 28 Sep 2022 18:22:08 +0000

Research says club sports are Mason’s untapped resource Colleen Rich Wed, 09/28/2022 - 14:22

Participation in club sports is a significant factor in bringing in and maintaining students at George Mason University, and also contributes to higher graduation rates, a new study has found.

Zikun Li. Photo by Cristian Torres/Strategic Communications

The research, by Mason PhD student Zikun Li, also found that as an engine for recruiting students, club sports could be added to Mason’s broader admissions and marketing strategies.

“These findings enhance the understanding of club sports and its broader impact on the university,” Li said. “Maybe it will inspire other universities to do some comparative studies.”

Li, who is in the interdisciplinary specialization program through the College of Education and Human Development (CEHD), began the study in December 2021 after a request from Paul Bazzano, assistant director of competitive sports, camps, and athletic training at Mason Recreation.

Laurence Chalip, a CEHD professor, a member of Mason’s Recreation Advisory Board, and Li’s advisor, asked his students if anyone was interested. Li was all in, even though the subject was not exactly in her program concentration of sport for development.

In that way, Li embodies Mason’s goal of delivering All Together Different by acting with confidence while trying something unconventional that challenges the status quo.

“As a novice scholar, I appreciate the interconnectedness among disciplines,” said Li, who earned her undergraduate degree in her native China and her master’s at the University of Michigan. “Because of Mason’s interdisciplinary program I have been able to take courses outside the sports area, which gives me a refreshing way to look at it. I’m able to see sports in a broader way.”

“Zikun is deeply interested in the ways in which sport is used effectively and ineffectively for development purposes,” Chalip said. “But clearly, when you work in the policy world, economics matter. Policymakers want to know what the numbers look like. So to develop the kind of skills that will enable her to work in the policy world—understanding how to collect data, and analyzing and thinking through financial data—is really vital. So it made great sense.”

Mason's men's ice hockey team was among the club sports that scored high in terms of players choosing Mason to participate in the sport. Photo by Lathan Goumas/Strategic Communications

Li surveyed 425 undergraduate club sports athletes during the 2021-22 academic year. The data were eye-opening.

For example ...

The aggregate spending by undergraduate club sports athletes at Mason in the 2021-22 academic year—including tuition, campus fees, campus housing, food, Mason gear, study-related supplies, parking, and health insurance through the university, minus financial aid—is estimated at more than $21 million.
Athletes agreed that playing club sports factored into their decision to attend and stay enrolled at Mason, and their decision to recommend the university to potential students. Those participating in men’s ice hockey and men’s football (both of which actively recruit athletes to attend Mason), were especially strong on those scores, with 92.3% of football players and 100% of hockey players saying their participation is a factor in remaining at Mason.
Students who participate in club sports as freshmen, even if they did not participate as sophomores, graduated at a significantly higher rate than the overall undergraduate student body: 76% to 70.1% for six-year graduates; 66% to 65.7% for five-year graduates; 54% to 47.4% for four-year graduates.

Why is this information important?

“Our goal was to gather information for us to make the best decisions moving forward as a department and a university,” Bazzano said. “Is recruiting an opportunity for some of our other clubs? Is recruitment something that can differentiate ourselves from other universities?”

There is also a financial consideration, Bazzano said.

“Is there any way we can restructure to support those programs, to lower the barriers of student participants funding them?” he said. “The focus is on how we can reimagine our budget and restructure what we’re doing.”

Andrew Bunting, Mason’s executive director of enrollment services, also found Li’s research useful.

“Her work is certainly research of consequence and can have a direct impact on the way the Mason markets itself to prospective students,” Bunting said. “Zikun’s findings help us to better understand the various and often very personalized factors that motivate students to apply, enroll, and persist at the university.”

Li, who plans to graduate by the end of 2023 and hopes to turn the research into a publishable paper, said the research experience will benefit her eventual search for a faculty position.

“This study not only generated my interest in continuously understanding club sports, but also enhanced my data analysis skills,” Li said. “To do some hands-on analysis really gave me confidence to do more quantitative research in the future.”

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