Every year, mental health gains more and more attention; this was especially true during the past couple of traumatic years that caused a significant amount of stress from various factors, including financial, social, academic, physical, and a lot more. Active Minds, the mental health club at Andrews University, aims to advocate more about the importance of mental health and fight the stigma that is present regarding this topic under the leadership of the officers, including President Irina Gagiu (senior, psychology) and Vice President Jheanna Rattray (senior, psychology). Learn more about the club's endeavor to make the AU campus a safer and healthier place for our students.
Hi, Irina and Jheanna! Could you introduce the Active Minds club to our Student Movement audience?
Irina: Active Minds of Andrews University is a section of a larger organization called Active Minds, and this organization advocates for mental health on college campuses around the country. It used to be that our club was officially, I believe, the Psychology Club, but now we are officially the Active Minds club, so we are a bit broader in our reach. We advocate for mental health awareness by being a club where people can come together to practice good mental health and feel comfortable talking about things related to mental health.
Excellent, so were both of you always passionate about mental health before coming to college, or was this something that has developed throughout your four years at Andrews? How do you think the Active Minds club has impacted your view of mental health since your first year?
Jheanna: I was not a psychology major my freshman year but a bio major. I was always interested in mental health, but I was trudging through biology, and it wasn't going so well on that route. So I talked to my mom, who works as a psychologist, and she suggested that I major in psychology instead because there are a lot of things in it that she thought I'd be interested in. I thought it couldn't be any worse than biology, so I gave it a go and took a couple of psych classes. I then ended up really, really liking it. Mental health-wise, I think just being in college, everything about it is relevant to my daily life and the people around me, and the psychology coursework helped me understand those things and their processes on a deeper level.
Irina: I've been a psych major since my first year, and I agree with what Jheanna said about the coursework part. Active Minds also impacted how I view mental health, because it allowed me to approach it more casually, and with a focus specifically on us college students, which has been really exciting. When I first heard about the club, I was really excited to see what the club has done in the past, and then I learned that the club was fairly new in its partnerships with Active Minds. So the club is still formulating and learning when it comes to planning annual or weekly events. Still, with everything we've done, It has been a fun experience to interact with people in and out of our department to talk about mental health. And like Jheanna said, just being able to do events that aren't exclusive and catered towards a specific major has made it easier to show that our club and our activities are relatable to everyone, because mental health is important for everyone.
What was the motivation behind applying for your position? Did you want to continue the work that has been done in the past, or did you see room for growth for your club?
Jheanna: I started off in Active Minds as the Secretary, and then applied to be Vice President (VP). I wanted to be the VP, one for grad school applications, and two to help promote more mental health wellness on campus. Having experience as Secretary, I was able to see how the club runs and be aware that the club is still getting its footing on campus. Before we were still very shaky in what we wanted to do and did smaller events that only club members would know about. But this year, we strived to go bigger. We had a Friendsgiving open to everyone, not just club members. We are also talking about doing conferences or having someone come in to talk about mental health. Being VP of this club gave me more agency to have a say about what our club can provide to the Andrews campus regarding mental health.
Irina: I started my sophomore year as a Secretary and Treasurer, Vice President my Junior year, and then this year as President. As I have said, I was excited when I heard about Active Minds since Freshman year. But when COVID happened, the club that year obviously didn't get to do a lot of events. Even after I became an officer, running the club was admittedly hard because it was a small officer team. We did some co-curriculars, but it definitely didn't feel like the amount of outreach any of us had hoped to do. So this year has been even more exciting for me with all the events we planned, and I feel so grateful for the position as President and for my team. I think the team understands how much the club could mean to students in its growth and outreach.
So how has the process been working with your officer team? Please share some moments or activities the club had this semester, and what the experience has been for you two.
Irina: This year, to celebrate World Mental Health Day, we held a Mini World Mental Health Day on campus, where students came by to color the coloring books or cards, while drinking hot chocolate and apple cider. We were trying to create an opportunity for students to take a break from the day, and it was great to meet people and even professors to stop by and color with us. We also partnered with the Social Work club for a game night, which was very fun. But our biggest one was what Jheanna mentioned, a Friendsgiving last week. This year was our second time doing it since we started it last year. It worked out fairly well then, and since we had a bigger officer team and members this year, we wanted to continue this initiative. We had a bigger turnout than expected, but we were able to provide all the food thanks to the officers and the professors who helped us out.
What future events can the students expect from Active Minds before finals or for next semester?
Irina: You should look forward to a mini break during the final season. In the past, we've given out little treats or care packages so that people can find a room to have a break from stress. As for next semester, I definitely expect some co-curriculars to happen. At the moment, we are thinking of inviting individuals who work in the psychology field to come and talk about their work.
Now that I asked you about the plans for the club, may I ask you what your future plans are after graduation? How do you see yourself using your college experience in both coursework and Active Minds to advocate for mental health wherever you are?
Jheanna: Both of us plan to go into the field of psychology and are planning to go to graduate school all the way up to our doctorate. We want to be psychologists and therapists, so in that way, we would be advocating for mental health and helping people with their mental health as a career.
Irina: I think my experience in Active Minds taught me a lot about finding a way to introduce discussions on mental health more casually. I think this is effective, since the stigma against mental health can make people nervous when sharing about themselves. The club has taught me the importance of starting a light conversation, getting to know each other, and creating a safe and fun environment where we can have opportunities to discuss deeper things while feeling comfortable.
Are there any final words you would like to share about Active Minds, or mental health awareness?
Irina: For our members, merch will be here by the beginning of next semester. I also want to add that with all this snow, it's essential to take care of yourselves and be aware of seasonal depression. And if you want to meet any of our officers, many of us are always in the department.
Jheanna: In conclusion, join our club! And if you have any questions, you can always Instagram DM one of us. You can check our Instagram profile in each officer introduction posted on the Active Minds Instagram Account (@andrewsactiveminds).
The Student Movement is the official student newspaper of Andrews University. Opinions expressed in the Student Movement are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the opinions of the editors, Andrews University or the Seventh-day Adventist church.