Throughout Winter 2021, AACUSS will host several sessions for members on a wide-range of topics. This session is presented by Erica McGill, Director of Health, Wellness and Accessibility and Courtney Sheedy, Campus Health Promoter, Acadia University.

The Brain Health Reward Program: A Collaborative Mental Wellness Promotion Program, Bringing Students, Staff, Faculty and Community Partners Together

Acadia University has been piloting the Brain Health Rewards Program (BHRP) since January 2019. The purpose of the BHRP is to increase the engagement of students around mental (brain) health through events that are facilitated by community and campus health professionals. The events that are included in the BHRP are evidence based, educational, and include multiple activities that support this learning. By working with faculty and incentivizing participation through bonus marks, we’ve had a tremendous response and increase in the numbers of students attending mental health events - up to 30 times the number we have typically gotten in the past. With this collaborative program we are hoping to increase the ways in which students can learn and strengthen their abilities to manage and care for their own health and wellbeing now and in the future.

Courtney Sheedy, BScHP
Acadia University’s Campus Health Promoter
Courtney received her BSc in Health Promotion at Dalhousie University. During her university years she was also a student-athlete, playing for the Varsity Women’s Hockey Team. In the last semester of her program she completed an internship with the NSHA’s Mental Health and Addictions Department, with most of her time dedicated to The Fountain of Health Initiative. Her internship connected her to her current position at Acadia, where she has helped implement several health promotion programs such as Acadia 4 U, The Brain Health Rewards Program and YOU101: Majoring in Yourself. Courtney’s passion lies in mental health promotion and hopes to change the dialogue on how we work with preventing mental illness to promoting mental wellness.