This fall, to help institutions of higher education address increases in student loneliness, ongoing uncertainty on campus, and financial concerns due to COVID-19, the YOU at College team launched a Nod Partnership Grant to award 15 institutions with a free, two year Nod campus partnership. Nod is a student mental health and well-being evidence-based app designed to directly combat loneliness on college campuses, and is the first mobile intervention of its kind to enter a randomized controlled trial.
Grants were awarded based on the fit of Nod on campus, demonstrated financial need and institutional support for distribution to students. About the Grant opportunity, our CEO and Founder, Joe Conrad, said, “Nod was created to address the growing problem of loneliness on campus by building social connections. The growth in diversity, the pressure to make college worth the cost and the decline in in-person social interaction during high-school has led to lonelier college campuses. By giving Nod to 15 deserving institutions of higher learning, we hope to help their students use the app to reinforce positive social habits and build community.”
See below for a list of our Nod Grant awardee institutions:
- University of California, Riverside
- University of Albany
- San Diego City College
- College of the Marshall Islands
- Casper College
- Embry Riddle-Aeronautical University
- Southern Connecticut State University
- University of Illinois at Chicago
- Arkansas State University – Newport
- Bethel College
- Castleton University
- University of Colorado Colorado Springs
- Kingsborough Community College
- Auburn University
- Luther College
Nod was developed through a partnership between Grit Digital Health, a purpose-driven organization providing behavioral health tools for institutions of higher education; and Hopelab, a nonprofit social innovation lab based in San Francisco. Research published in the Journal of Medical Internet Research (JMIR) shows Nod’s efficacy in buffering at-risk college students from loneliness and depression while also improving sleep quality, social support, and intent to persist.
Trip Starkey, Communications & Partnerships Manager
trip@gritdigitalhealth.com | (303) 2424-4318
About Grit Digital Health:
Grit Digital Health develops behavioral health solutions through design and technology that envision a new way to approach mental health and well-being. In addition to Nod, they are the creators of YOU at College, a personalized well-being platform for students and Man Therapy, a ground-breaking men’s mental health campaign. The company aims to solve critical health problems through innovation and creativity.
