A newly formed club, National Alliance on Mental Health (NAMI), is an organization determined to end the stigma surrounding mental health while granting access to the help those may need in mental health crisis situations.
“NAMI is important to me personally because it symbolizes this new generation of people who are not afraid to talk about mental health the way they do physical health,” said Ashley Gangaware, junior nursing major and current leader of the club. “I think this club is important because it will grant students the access and help they need during the difficult and stressful years of college.”
High school and college students are among the most affected in regard to mental health. The club serves as an outlet for students to talk about mental health and how to cope with the struggles of life.
Junior psychology major Drew Haritos thinks the club is an amazing thing to have on campus.
“I think it will be a great opportunity for people to become more knowledgeable about how to help themselves and peers in times of stress,” said Haritos. “Knowing that they have friends and peers around them that can offer them guidance on what to do if they are struggling may help more people seek assistance in bad times.”
The club is open to all majors. 
The adviser for the club is Dr. Todd Hastings, a new nursing assistant professor who Gangaware says was “the inspiration for the club.”
Hastings has worked in the psychiatric nursing field and has had first hand experience in regards to college clubs. He brought the idea up to nursing students at the beginning of the semester, who then took the idea and ran with it.
“We want to make NAMI on campus a school-wide force to fight against the stigma of mental health,” said Gangaware.
Hastings thanks Gangaware and a few other members of the club for the work they have done.
“The stars lined up well per the local NAMI folks reaching out in support of a collaboration which we hope will elevate a community presence not just on campus but into the broader Wilkes-Barre plus area,” said Hastings.