In a culture that too often silences mental health as a taboo topic, Student Association leadership is taking a much-needed opportunity to encourage administrative action on an issue directly related to students’ success and wellbeing.

SA President James Franco and Vice President Angie Pati, as a follow-up to one of their campaign promises last spring, are rightfully encouraging SU administrators to delegate some of the $100 million Invest Syracuse funding toward hiring more mental health counselors at the severely understaffed campus Counseling Center.

With only one counselor for every 1,282 students, SU’s counselor-to-student ratio lags behind its peer institutions. Cornell University has one counselor for every 830 students, and Georgetown University has one for every 1,086. These ratios reflect one of SU’s major shortcomings in terms of student life. It’s crucial the university makes conscious efforts to ensure its mental health services are up-to-par with those of its peers, and the Invest Syracuse initiative presents an opportunity to fund those services.

If the function of the Invest Syracuse initiative is to enhance student experiences, then buying into mental health services should be recognized by the SU administration as a way to generate real, proactive change for students. Aside from resolving the Counseling Center’s staffing problem, adding counselors could give the center more time to advertise its services on campus and in turn encourage students to receive timely help.

When universities invest in mental health treatment, they’re investing in the creation of a happier, healthier and more productive campus community. It’s time for SU’s Counseling Center to be given the funding it deserves to be on par with peer institutions that are able to provide comprehensive mental health services to students, and Invest Syracuse should be at least part of that funding pool.

If Invest Syracuse is designed to generate a better student experience at SU, mental health is something worth investing in.

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