Building Bridges: A Case Study of Peer Support in Enhancing Mental Health for Students at a Hispanic-Serving Institution

Oct 15, 2026

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Rising mental health challenges are increasing pressure on higher education systems, particularly for first-generation students at a Hispanic-serving institution shaped by high incarceration rates and frequent behavioral-health-related hospital visits. A Peer Support Network (PSN) pilot addressed a gap in documented planning guidance by implementing a peer-support model focused on mental health education and help-seeking. Six trained peer educators delivered semester programming to about 200 students, with engagement tracked via logs and narrative reports, while initial reflections highlighted the need for further empirical evaluation to inform replication.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryHealthcare

FormatPDF

Pages22

Reading Time55 min

AccessFree to download

Abstract

The Challenge

Consequences

Description

Reflection

Introduction

Building Bridges: A Case Study of Peer Support in Enhancing Mental Health for Students at a HispanicServing Institution Crystal Benjamin1, Constance Lacy2, and Alex D. Colvin3 1 School of Behavioral Health and Human Services, University of North Texas at Dallas, 2 School of Behavioral Health and Human Services, Dean, University of North Texas at Dallas, 3 School of Behavioral Health and Human Services, Associate Professor and Chair of Undergraduate Programs, University of North Texas at Dallas Cite as: Benjamin, C., Lacy, C., & Colvin, A. D. (2025) . Building Bridges: A Case Study of Peer Support in Enhancing Mental Health for Students at a Hispanic-Serving Institution. Metropolitan Universities, 36(1), 73-94. DOI: 10.18060/28679 This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License. Guest Editor: Laurie Van Egeren, Ph. D. Associate Guest Editors: Andrew Carlson, Ph. D., Paula O’Loughlin, Ph. D., and Deidra Peaslee, Ed. D. Editor: Patrick M. Green, Ed. D. Abstract The Challenge: Rising mental health challenges are placing increasing strain on higher education systems. At this Hispanic-and minority-serving institution, many students are firstgeneration college students from neighborhoods characterized by some of Texas’s highest incarceration rates and among the top ten ZIP codes for behavioral health-related hospital visits. When we embarked on developing the Peer Support Network (PSN) pilot program to address these challenges, we found limited documentation or standardized guidelines detailing how to effectively plan and implement a peer support program within a university setting. While peer support initiatives existed at other institutions, little information was available regarding standard operating procedures, protocols, or best practices to guide our efforts. Consequences: The lack of documented guidelines led to our pilot project, which introduced operational challenges during program implementation. We decided to share our insights to support the development and sustainability of future peer support programs in diverse university settings. Description: This case study piloted a peer support model to enhance mental health awareness and encourage help-seeking behaviors. Six undergraduate peer educators were recruited, screened, and trained in Youth Mental Health First Aid and the Question, Persuade, Refer (QPR) model. Over the course of one semester, they engaged approximately 200 students, representing about 5% of the student body, through classroom presentations, peer-led workshops, and information tables. Engagement metrics and anecdotal impacts were documented through team logs and narrative reports. Reflection: This pilot program was presented as a model rooted in peer support theory, illustrating an approach to addressing mental health education within a university setting. We initially set out to evaluate how this program would impact perceptions of proficiency among a cohort of peer educators. While this initial effort yielded valuable insights, further research is necessary to more comprehensively assess the program’s effectiveness. Additional empirical studies will be essential to evaluate outcomes and to guide potential replication at other minority-serving, metropolitan universities. Keywords: higher education, peer support, mental health, student success, youth mental health first aid, first-generation students Introduction In 2018, more than 40% of the 8.9 million young adults who admitted to having a mental illness did not receive any treatment. Additionally, nearly 90% of the 5.1 million individuals (about twice the population of Mississippi) with a substance use disorder did not receive any treatment (Substance Abuse and Mental Health Administration, 2022) . College students have more emotional issues than their non-studying counterparts (El-Monshed et al., 2021) . The mental health crisis on college campuses has reached unprece

FAQs

What problem does the Peer Support Network (PSN) pilot target?

The pilot targets rising mental health challenges and the lack of standardized, documented guidance for planning and implementing peer support programs in universities.

How was the peer support program implemented?

Six undergraduate peer educators were recruited, screened, and trained in Youth Mental Health First Aid and the Question, Persuade, Refer (QPR) model.

What outcomes or impacts were documented during the pilot?

Engagement reached approximately 200 students through classroom presentations, peer-led workshops, and information tables, with metrics and anecdotal impacts recorded in team logs and narrative reports.

Oct 15, 2026

Upload by Riley