Contact: Shane Creepingbear
Title: Dean of Admission and Community Relations
Email: communications@antiochcollege.edu
Phone: 937-319-6082
ANTIOCH COLLEGE AWARDED MAJOR GRANT AS PART OF NATIONAL $8.5 MILLION INITIATIVE FOR STUDENT WELL-BEING
Yellow Springs college to leverage funding to scale innovative mental health and community care programs, placing student flourishing at the heart of the liberal arts experience.
YELLOW SPRINGS, OH – 9/10/25 – Antioch College is proud to announce its pivotal role in a national consortium that has secured $8.5 million from the Endeavor Foundation to transform student mental health and well-being at small liberal arts colleges. Antioch is a founding member of the Endeavor Lab Colleges (ELC), a collaborative of ten institutions driving this groundbreaking work.
The funding includes $5.22 million dedicated to Phase 2 of the initiative, which will allow Antioch to build upon its successful pilot programs and deepen its commitment to fostering resilient, purpose-driven, and caring campus communities.
“This investment is a testament to the innovative work already underway at Antioch and a powerful catalyst for our future,” said Jane Fernandes. “Our mission has always centered on educating the whole person for a life of meaning and impact. This grant provides critical resources to scale our efforts, ensuring that well-being, belonging, and community care are not just add-ons, but are fully integrated into the fabric of an Antioch education.”
As part of the ELC, Antioch will focus on implementing and expanding five central initiatives over the next three years, including:
Cultivating Curricular Innovation: Integrating well-being concepts and skills directly into academic and co-curricular experiences.
Building Models of Community Care: Developing a scalable, trauma-informed model of support for students, faculty, and staff.
Center for Purposeful Life and Work: Empowering students to connect their values and education with meaningful career pathways.
Mapping Belonging: Using dynamic physical and digital campus maps to foster deeper connections to place, history, and community.
Nature Rx Programming: Expanding opportunities for students to engage with the natural world for healing and well-being, a effort that aligns perfectly with Antioch’s legacy of environmental stewardship and its beautiful campus.
“This collaborative allows us to share best practices and create evidence-based models that can benefit not just Antioch, but small colleges across the nation,” said Fernandes. “We are reimagining how a liberal arts institution can actively support the holistic development of every student.”
The initial phase of the project, supported by $3.275 million from Endeavor, enabled Antioch and its partner colleges to develop and pilot these innovative projects. Phase 2 funding will focus on scaling these successful interventions, ensuring their sustainability, and widely disseminating the findings.
About Antioch College
Antioch College is a private, nonprofit liberal arts college in Yellow Springs, Ohio. Renowned for its progressive legacy, experiential learning through its renowned co-op program, and commitment to social justice, Antioch educates students to win victories for humanity, think critically, and engage meaningfully with the world. For more information, visit www.antiochcollege.edu.