McGraw Hill Teams with The Jed Foundation to Support Student Mental Health and Wellbeing

NEW YORK, N.Y. (October 1, 2020) – Learning science company McGraw Hill is joining with The Jed Foundation (JED), a nonprofit that protects young adults’ emotional health, to make important information and resources about mental health and emotional wellbeing available to college students through McGraw Hill’s Connect platform, used by more than 4 million students annually.

McGraw Hill and The Jed Foundation are also excited to announce a joint webinar for educators and college leaders on Wednesday, October 14th at 2:30 p.m. ET entitled Promising Practices: Supporting the Mental Health of Diverse Student Populations. Those who wish to attend can register here: http://bit.ly/webinarregistration101420.

The effort is a response to statistics that show young adults are suffering in greater numbers from mental health problems, anxiety, depression and thoughts of suicide. Experts say the stress of the COVID-19 pandemic is taking its toll and making it harder for students to get help.

“This is an unprecedented time for young people as they deal with and respond to the pandemic and the stress of adjusting to a new educational reality,” says John MacPhee, executive director and CEO of The Jed Foundation. “By partnering with McGraw Hill, we're able to reach more students online with our educational resources to equip them with the tools and skills they need to strengthen their mental health and improve their wellbeing.”

By sharing JED content, tips and information on how to get help, McGraw Hill is making knowledge about mental health available to millions of students who use its platforms.

The effort is one of many McGraw Hill has made to add new products and learning tools to its ecosystem of online learning solutions during the COVID-19 pandemic. Those innovations include a new Virtual Labs tool for science courses, free virtual tutoring for users of McGraw Hill Connect, McGraw Hill eBooks and a partnership with the Online Learning Consortium to certify McGraw Hill employees and faculty consultants as online learning experts.

“This is an incredibly stressful time for college students – as it is for all of us,” said Mike Ryan, President of Higher Education at McGraw Hill. “With data showing that students are suffering from increased levels of anxiety and depression, and often finding it more difficult to get help due to the effects of isolation, we want to do what we can to help. We’re excited to team with the experts at the Jed Foundation to help bring their information and resources to a larger audience.”