Earlier in October, The Boris Lawrence Henson Foundation (BLHF) and kate spade new york announced the third expansion of “SheCare Wellness Pods,” a program that launched in April 2023 to provide frontline mental health care to women on HBCU campuses. After the inaugural launch at Alabama State University and a second opening at Hampton University in 2023, BLHF and kate spade are expanding the initiative to a third pod at Bennett College in Greensboro, North Carolina.

Bennett College was purposefully selected to be the third campus following a student led sit-in protest demanding better mental health services on campus. The sit-in protest demonstrated that there was a need for more culturally sensitive resources for the community, such as the “SheCare Wellness Pods.” The on-campus mental health pod opened at Bennett College - one of two all-female HBCUs in the country - on October 22, 2024, and for the first time in the program, the Pod services will expand beyond campus and also be available to students from neighboring North Carolina A&T State University, as well as local community groups focused on women in Greensboro.

The “SheCare Wellness Pods'' are physical structures that bring mental health access and resources to Black women on HBCU campuses. Each is designed to create an environment that stimulates joy, peace and serenity through intentional design and color selection. The exterior of the Pod features a hand painted mural designed by Greensboro community member and artist, Alyse Watt, in partnership with two Bennett College students, Genesis Almodovar and Trinity Cromwell. The mural design was inspired by wellness and highlights the inherent strength and beauty found in women. Designed to uplift the students, the inclusion of the hashtag #BelleMindsMatter reflects an initiative that emerged from the need for mental health support within the Bennett College community.

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