SPEAKING OUR MINDS

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Speaking Our Minds emerged out of the Mental Health and Arts Initiative, a pilot initiative at San Francisco State University focused on opening up discussions on student mental health in classroom settings using arts-based interventions. The Mental Health and Arts Initiative was developed by the SFSU Health Humanities Affinity Group and funded by the College of Liberal and Creative Arts (LCA) Extraordinary Ideas Mini Grant, as well as Yerba Buena Center for the Arts. This initiative was borne out of faculty concern over the growing mental health crisis affecting students at SFSU and across the US. 13 faculty in 5 colleges collaborated on the initiative. Participating faculty integrated a mental health component in their curriculum and welcomed local artists into their classrooms, who led workshops focused on mental health and creative expression. SFSU students were also invited to submit creative works addressing mental health to be featured in a campus exhibit and at the Yerba Buena Center for the Arts. Speaking Our Minds is now collaborating with the SFSU Basic Needs Initiative, a broad initiative focusing on disparate aspects of student basic needs. For the 2021-2022 academic year, Speaking Our Minds will expand its programs to support student and faculty mental health; particularly in light of challenges from the COVID-19 pandemic.