Project Connect applications open to MSU students

ProjectConnect is available now for its sixth semester here at MSU. The program has been adapted to MSU’s college environment through campus’s Counseling & Psychological Services (CPS). Its goal is to build student connection and improve mental health.

According to ProjectConnect's official website, the program involves small groups of five to seven students engaging in a series of questions and activities designed to foster closeness, connection and community. These groups meet for six one-hour sessions, during which participants reportedly reduce loneliness and establish meaningful friendships​​. Participation can be through both in-person and remote options, according to the website. 

ProjectConnect’s founder, Jessica Gifford, shared what the program is about both personally and to those involved. “I started [ProjectConnect] when I was working at Amherst College. I was seeing really high rates of loneliness among students – that was before the pandemic – loneliness rates were already really high and as a mental health professional that's something I'm really concerned about,” she said. 

According to Gifford she moved to working on ProjectConnect full time in June of 2020. “My driving force was really just knowing the immense value that having positive relationships has on mental health, that's why I wanted to focus on ProjectConnect,” Gifford said. Because of this positive relationship, she said she felt it was really important to implement the program on other college campuses.

When asked about the effect ProjectConnect had on campuses across the country, Gifford advocated the program's effectiveness is highlighted by its widespread adoption— with over 75 campuses utilizing the program, she said approximately 98% of participants respond by saying they would recommend ProjectConnect to a friend and 95% express a desire to participate again​​​​.

The program is run by facilitators who can be students, staff or faculty members. Facilitators undergo virtual Facilitator Certification Training provided by ProjectConnect, equipping them to lead groups effectively. 

Assistant Director of Outreach and Prevention at CPS Dr. Laura Santa Thum commented more on how ProjectConnect is set up at MSU. “In 2021, we trained our first group of peer facilitators and were able to offer one [ProjectConnect] group that fall, with two others that spring. Since then we have tried to offer [ProjectConnect] groups each semester. The number of groups and frequency have been dependent on the availability of student facilitators — we try to train some each semester — and schedules. When we have groups running, peer facilitators check in with one of us each week for support [and] guidance.”

Thum also commented on the program's value in tackling student loneliness. “Connectedness and social support are very important for healthy mental functioning. Even on a campus the size of ours, it can still be challenging for people to find and make meaningful connections. This is a unique opportunity for students who, under typical circumstances, would not have had an opportunity or reason to interact with each other, to meet and to connect with each other in a meaningful way,” she said.

ProjectConnect is expected to begin its next session in the spring semester of 2024. Applications and more information can be found on MSU’s website at https://www.montana.edu/counseling/studentinvolvement.html.