Groundbreaking initiative expands to additional Texas community colleges following successful first year supporting student mental health

The Meadows Institute and Texas Success Center Expand the Minding College Minds™ Learning Community to Twelve Additional Colleges

September 25, 2025

Following the successful launch of the inaugural Minding College Minds learning community last September, the Meadows Mental Health Policy Institute and the Texas Success Center at the Texas Association of Community Colleges are partnering once again to support Texas community colleges by creating comprehensive mental health systems that support student well-being and success.

Last year, 13 community colleges serving 330,000 students were selected to participate in the inaugural learning community. The schools were selected for their commitment to supporting student, faculty, and staff mental health and well-being. The ongoing partnership addresses a critical need among community colleges across the state of Texas. In a 2024 study, the Center for Community College Student Engagement (CCCSE) reported that 56% of the students surveyed said that emotional or mental difficulties hurt their academic performance in the previous four weeks. Three in 10 students stated that their mental health hurt their academic performance for three or more days.

“Mental health issues and insecurities are the primary issues impacting graduation,”

said Dr. Jason Morrison, President of Trinity Valley Community College, a member of the inaugural Minding College Minds cohort. “Colleges need more support in addressing these needs if we’re to truly improve outcomes. It is not just academic importance; it is life importance. We must become more holistic in how we educate the future.”

The Minding College Minds Learning Community
Texas community colleges statewide are coming together through the Minding College Minds learning community to better address this growing need. Each college that completes the year-long program will understand how to implement a comprehensive mental health system using the Meadows Institute’s Minding College Minds Framework for Postsecondary Mental Health™. This framework drives innovation at each campus by sharing resources, best practices, and inventive solutions that allow each college’s multidisciplinary team to build an action plan for refining their mental health efforts that is tailored to their needs and resources.

The first cohort of colleges completed the learning community in June 2025. They presented their action plans for improving their systems of support to their executive leadership, who saw the clear connection between mental health and student success.

“The waves of student needs are going to keep coming. We must build a culture of understanding so we’re ready to meet them where they are,” said Dr. Mark Escamilla, President of Del Mar College, which participated in the inaugural Minding College Minds cohort.

Second Cohort Expands Statewide Impact
The first cohort now moves into implementing their action plans while a cohort of 12 additional colleges joins the program in its second year, significantly expanding the initiative’s reach across Texas. Like the inaugural cohort, this second group of institutions represents a diverse set of campuses across the state, including rural colleges serving small communities, large urban systems, and institutions from the Rio Grande Valley to the Panhandle. This geographic and demographic diversity allows colleges to learn and leverage each other’s expertise by bringing together different perspectives, challenges, and spearheading innovative solutions.

Through both cohorts, over 550,000 students will benefit from colleges committing to building systems that support their mental health, well-being, and academic success. The second cohort represents a devoted group of forward-thinking institutions dedicated to transforming how they support student success through comprehensive mental health approaches.

Second cohort members include:

• Austin Community College District
• El Paso Community College
• Galveston College
• Hill College
• Houston City College
• Lee College
• Northeast Texas Community College
• South Texas College
• Tarrant County College District
• Temple College
• Vernon College
• Western Texas College

This initiative is supported by Trellis Foundation, Greater Texas Foundation, Texas Pioneer Foundation, Ascendium, and ECMC Foundation.

To learn more about Minding College Minds, visit https://mmhpi.org/mindingcollegeminds.