The Mental Health of College Students

The results of the study on "Mental Health of College Students and Their Non College Attending Peers" (http://archpsyc.ama-assn.org/cgi/content/short/65/12/1429), published in the Archives of General Psychiatry, were released earlier this week. The study points out an issue I feel is often overlooked in the TAY population--the prevalence of mental illness among college students. There is a perception that college-attending students need less support and mental health services than non-college attending TAY, and that the academic success of college students is an accurate indicator of robust mental wellness.

Well, as you can see, the findings of the study beg to differ. The study found that, counting substance abuse, "almost half of college-aged individuals had a psychiatric disorder in the past year."

Most significantly, the study also found that "The overall rate of psychiatric disorders was not different between college-attending individuals and their non–college-attending peers."

According to the study, almost 1 in 5 young American adults has a personality disorder that interferes with every day life. This was the second most common problem behind substance abuse.

There were some notable differences between the populations. College students were significantly more likely to have alcohol-use disorders while non-college attending TAY were more likely to have drug use disorders or nicotine dependency. Despite this, college students were less likely to receive rehab treatment for alcohol or drug abuse disorders than non-college attending TAY.

Overall, the study found that fewer than 25% of college students with a mental disorder sought treatment.

I would like to remind everyone, as we consider TAY issues, to not forget the importance of treatment and prevention interventions for TAY who are in college! Many TAY are college students, and for the TAY who are not, attending college is still a hoped-for and likely eventuality. To me, this is undeniable evidence that mental health providers MUST work with higher education institutions to ensure that all TAY have access to appropriate mental health services.

More from the Associated Press (http://www.newsweek.com/id/171615/output/print)

Marissa Lee
CAYEN Steering Committee

Impact of Governor’s Executive Order on Mental Health Services

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger issued and executive order on July 31 that sought to roll back wages of as many as 200,000 state employees and lay off more than 10,000 of the state's 22,000 temporary, contract and part-time workers. It also resulted in stop work orders to contracted entities of many of the state’s departments; including the Department of Mental Health.

The governor asked department heads to report to him by Friday with lists of employees they believe should be exempt from the executive order for critical health and safety reasons.

The Department of Mental Health initially issued stop work orders to over 90 contractors throughout the state, including NAMI, CNMHC, and UACF. Fortunately they reversed about 30 of them including those contracts with the three organizations above.

The stop work order has however, impacted the Mental Health Services Oversight and Accountability Commission (MHSOAC) and some of the work related to the Mental Health Services Act.

We all hope that the budget will be resolved soon so that lives are minimally impacted by this temporary setback.

Get Involved to be a Part of the Solution!

TAY One-Stop Centers- 7/28/08

The Mental Health Services Act (MHSA), passed by California voters in 2004 as Proposition 63, has created opportunities for supporters of Transition Age Youth to advocate for policies and programs that will result in positive outcomes for more TAY who suffer from a severe mental illness (including, schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, chronic depression, and anxiety disorders).

Over the last year, CAYEN has obtained feedback, suggestions and opinions from TAY throughout the state about a number of issues that affect adolescents and young adults through surveys, focus groups, and numerous informal interviews and meetings. A significant finding suggests that a “one-stop” or “drop-in” center would be more effective in reaching and engaging transition age youth and young adults into mental health services and programs than programs and services delivered in a county mental health building or a mental health/psychiatric clinic.

The “One-Stop TAY Centers” would ideally have:
- TAY involved in all decisions,
- peer to peer supports,
- access to computers for job and education searches,
- a game room with pool tables, a TV, and board games,
- a family/community environment,
- laundry facilities,
- shower facilities,
- benefits assistance,
- housing and transportation assistance,
- probation assistance,
- counseling services/programs available,
- education and job placement assistance.

For more information on TAY centers, please visit our website www.ca-yen.org.

Visit the following links for more information on models of TAY centers currently in operation:

Alameda County- Youth Uprising
http://www.youthuprising.org/index.html

Humboldt County- The RAVEN Project, Youth Services Bureau
http://rcaa.org/ysb/stroutrch.html

San Mateo County- Edgewood Turning Point Drop-In Center
http://www.edgewood.org/whatwedo/community/turning-point.html

San Bernardino County- TAY One-Stop Center
Website is under construction, but this is the link to their development proposal and contact information.
http://www.co.san-bernardino.ca.us/dbh/MHSA/CSS/CSS_Work_Plan_TAY1.pdf
http://www.co.san-bernardino.ca.us/dbh/childrenservices/childrenservices.asp

CAYEN will continue to promote and advocate for the development of more TAY One-Stop Centers throughout the state. Contact us if you would like to join our efforts to make this happen in your county.

Get Involved to Be Part of the Solution!

CAYEN Weekly Blog Entries - 7/14/08

Welcome! The Mental Health Association in California is pleased to announce the start of the California Youth Empowerment Network’s (CAYEN) weekly Blog.

CAYEN was created to empower and inspire youth who are part of the Transitional Age Youth (TAY) (ages 16-25) community to create positive change in the mental health system. Our network is youth driven and run by a steering committee made up entirely of transition age youth. To participate on the steering committee or to become a member of CAYEN, please email us, reachout@ca-yen.org, or fax us a completed membership application, 916-447-2350.

Each week, we will provide you information on issues that are current and relevant to you as an adolescent making the transition into an adult, independent-centered society. We invite you to post or email us your comments and suggestions for future topics and issues you would like to see on this blog. We also invite you to submit your own work on issues relevant to the TAY community to be posted on the blog or to submit your story to be posted on our “Youth Stories” section of the website.

CAYEN will accomplish its mission through policy and legislative mental health advocacy at the state and local county level; development of local CAYEN affiliates throughout the state; a focus on racial/ethnic-specific supports, particularly Latino (41% of California’s 15-24 year olds are Latino1); support and development of TAY Drop-in centers throughout the state; and education for TAY on SSI/SSDI and other benefits and resources available to you.

Get Involved to Be Part of the Solution!


1 State of California, Department of Finance, Population Projections for California and Its Counties 2000-2050, by Age, Gender and Race/Ethnicity, Sacramento, California, July 2007.

Welcome to CAYEN's Blog

Welcome to the California Youth Empowerment Network's (CAYEN) blog page. Please use this feature to share your stories, thoughts, and ideas on issues concerning transition age youth (TAY) which are individuals between the ages of 16 and 25. We are happy to have you here.