Hokie ClubBLACKSBURG – Virginia Tech Athletics' Sport Psychology department and the Hokie Club are pleased to announce the return of their annual Mental Health Awareness Month fundraising campaign, kicking off on Wednesday and running until the conclusion of the month on Friday, May 31.
The goal of this fundraiser is to add supplemental funds to the budget of Counseling and Athletic Mental Performance, known as CAMP, to better serve the mental health of all student-athletes in Blacksburg.
"We have made significant steps in the past two years funding our department with the generous help of Hokie Nation during this time," said Dr. Gary Bennett, who serves as the Senior Associate Athletic Director, Clinical and Sports Psychologist and heads CAMP. "We want to put ourselves in the best position to help our student-athletes, and this can allow us to do that."
Hokie Nation can help the CAMP staff maintain the positive mental health of Virginia Tech student-athletes by philanthropically supporting the Sport Psychology department. Click here to make a gift.
The CAMP staff reported that over 50% of student-athletes on campus scheduled a counseling session at some point within the last calendar year. In addition to individual counseling sessions, CAMP has also led annual suicide prevention workshops and other team-based programming.
"Dr. Bennett, Lauren Naldo, Paul Knackstedt and Kara Hoff do incredible work for so many student-athletes on campus," said Danny White, who oversees CAMP as Executive Associate AD/Administration and Support Programs. "They serve in an important role of ensuring our student-athletes flourish while they are in Blacksburg. They are credentialed, well-trained professionals who are approachable and genuine, putting others at ease – that combination helps decrease the stigma around student-athletes openly seeking mental health services."
Additional funding for CAMP would go towards purchasing additional tools like biofeedback machines, increasing the resources for more student interns to assist the department and paying for additional training courses to certify the staff in the constantly developing practices surrounding mental health care.
"Our student-athletes are here at such a transitional point in their lives," said Bennett, who has served as a sport psychologist at Virginia Tech since 2000. "They are trying to navigate succeeding in their sport and in the classroom, all the while being away from their families and figuring out their future after college. It really is important for us to guide those who seek help in order for them to not only improve their performance in competition, but also to grow as human beings."
You can support Sport Psychology and the CAMP staff by clicking here.