Our Access Spotlight for the month is on Barbara and Mark Gerson, two longtime Michigan State supporters and mental health advocates. Barbara is a 1984 graduate of Michigan State’s College of Social Science with a degree in psychology. Her husband, Mark, is a University of Southern California graduate and adopted Spartan. The pair have been devoted to philanthropic efforts throughout their adult lives, including the production of two documentaries (2015’s The Hunting Ground and 2021’s UnBroken ) and serve on the board of several educational and health-oriented organizations, including Hospice of Michigan and Munson hospital in Northern Michigan.
This month, as we celebrate World Mental Health Day on October 10, we also want to acknowledge Mark and Barbara’s role in the creation of the Gerson Family Mental Health Initiative (GHFMI) 2016. In partnership with the Department of Psychology and Dr. Natalie Moser, the GFMHI provides preventative and intervention-based mental health and wellness support to students in the Social Science Scholars Program. Its goal is to reduce stigma related to mental health, increase the accessibility of services, and ensure that all Social Science Scholars have the support they need to remain academically engaged and successful.
As an alum, Barbara had been involved in conversations with development while living in Los Angeles. After moving to Grand Rapids, Barbara and Mark ended up meeting with members of the College, including Dr. John Waller, current Director of the Social Science Scholars Program. The Gersons were one of the first to support the program, contributing both financially and with their time and advice on ways to create a space for College of Social Science students from a variety of backgrounds in which they could thrive.
The Scholars program began in earnest in 2013, and during a meeting in the fall semester, leaders within the program shared with the Gersons and other Scholars supporters that many students were approaching her with a variety of mental health crises that she felt ill-equipped to tackle on her own. “There were some kids that were really struggling, and that’s where I came into it full-on, saying, ‘We need to get these kids some help, and we need to get it to them in a timely manner,” Barbara explains.
Thus the Gerson Family Mental Health Initiative was born. The GHFMI offers several services to Scholars students, including wellness seminars, crisis management services, and complimentary counseling slots at the MSU Psychological Clinic.
Both Barbara and Mark are passionate about preventative mental health care. “I think that if mental health care was acknowledged as something just like going to the doctor for a sore throat or an injury, there would be less problems,” said Mark. “People would be more open to talking about what’s going on as opposed to swallowing it and then having an outburst later on.”
“In our society right now, it’s really needed,” Barbara added. “I mean, think of all we’ve faced in the past five years. I think there’s a lot of disconnection where there needs to be connection, it’s one of the biggest challenges in our country right now.”
The couple are also not afraid to acknowledge their own struggles with mental health and the ways that they have sought out help, and hope that their stories can aid in reducing the stigma and encouraging students to tackle mental health issues sooner rather than later. The increased productivity, self-esteem, life satisfaction, and coping ability that come from putting in the work to be in good shape mentally are well worth it.
“I’m not ashamed to share that if I get stuck on something, and I’ve talked to Mark, and my friends, and I’ve done as much as I can, I call my therapist,” Barbara said. “Sometimes it’s one session, sometimes it’s several, but the key is to do whatever you need to do to take care of yourself. You are responsible to do that for you. That’s self-respect.
The Gersons feel honored to have been a part of the Scholars program’s growth and to have the opportunity to provide both mentorship support and mental health services. The program began with a cohort of 22 students and has since graduated over 200. Last fall during Homecoming and the MSU Alumni Awards ceremony, the Gersons were honored with the 2024 Philanthropy award, given to an individual, family, association, corporation or foundation who has provided significant financial support and leadership to the College of Social Science. Although the moment was bittersweet, with Barbara’s father in intensive care in Grand Rapids, the pair felt that he was there supporting them in spirit, and were grateful to be recognized for their work with the Scholars program.
“I feel like we were so supported by the program to think outside the box, and I hope other programs can do things the same way. It was such a gift to be able to explore how to address these issues in a mentally healthy way,” said Barbara.
“You start a program, you don’t know where it’ll go, and then to see the results of that and to hear what these people have achieved and seeing them happy with who they are and where they’re going … It’s contagious to us. It keeps us young. We seem to just never graduate,” Mark added.
The Gersons look forward to continuing to support the Scholars program and the College of Social Science in its efforts to foster a space where students can thrive. They hope that with the additional aid of mental health preventative care, these students can be even more prepared for the next stages of their lives. Seeing the progress members of the program have made with the help of the Gerson Family Mental Health Initiative has only motivated them to keep coming up with new ways to support students.
“We’ve been so fortunate that we have a great life and a great home and family, and I think it’s important to give back and help others achieve those things too,” said Mark. “It’s important to help people grow and achieve their goals and dreams. I think it makes us all better people.
Barbara agrees. “We’ve always felt, if there’s something we can do to make someone’s life better—we’re all in.”
Honorees’ views are their own and do not necessarily reflect those of the College of Social Science.