{"id":6259,"date":"2026-09-01T19:49:15","date_gmt":"2026-09-01T19:49:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/tmbglobal.news\/index.php\/2026\/09\/01\/lsa-should-maintain-its-momentum-on-student-mental-health\/"},"modified":"2026-09-01T19:49:20","modified_gmt":"2026-09-01T19:49:20","slug":"lsa-should-maintain-its-momentum-on-student-mental-health","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/tmbglobal.news\/index.php\/2026\/09\/01\/lsa-should-maintain-its-momentum-on-student-mental-health\/","title":{"rendered":"LSA should maintain its momentum on student mental health"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><\/p>\n<div>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">On Aug. 10, The University of Michigan School of Literature Science and the Arts <a href=\"https:\/\/record.umich.edu\/articles\/lsa-explores-new-grade-covering-pilot-to-support-first-year-students\/\">announced<\/a> that it will begin hiding\u00a0 first-semester grades for freshmen. Set to begin in fall of 2027, as part of a <a href=\"https:\/\/lsa.umich.edu\/lsa\/academics\/lsa-first-semester-grade-covering-pilot-program.html\">pilot program<\/a>, external official transcripts will display first-semester grades as \u201cPass\u201d or \u201cNo credit\u201d and exclude letter grades from students\u2019 cumulative grade point averages. LSA <a href=\"https:\/\/lsa.umich.edu\/lsa\/academics\/lsa-first-semester-grade-covering-pilot-program.html\">announced<\/a> that this program will encourage freshmen to explore more challenging subjects and ease their transition to college-level coursework. The program is also an effort at curbing the mental health crisis by decreasing rates of student anxiety and depression.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The University will maintain internal records of letter grades to monitor various student activities, such as financial aid eligibility and athletic compliance. Students will also have the option to request unmasked records for external educational or professional opportunities.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">While this Editorial Board believes working to reduce academic stressors and student anxiety is certainly important, hiding student grades alone will not cure the mental health crisis. The University must conduct this pilot program in conjunction with other efforts to actually improve student well-being.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">The student mental health crisis isn\u2019t unique to the University. Schools across the country are actively grappling with <a href=\"https:\/\/www.apa.org\/monitor\/2022\/10\/mental-health-campus-care\">rising<\/a> levels of anxiety and depression among their student bodies. In fact, more than 60% of college students meet the criteria for at least one mental health problem \u2014 nearly a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.nea.org\/nea-today\/all-news-articles\/mental-health-crisis-college-campuses\">50% increase<\/a> since 2013. It\u2019s clear student mental health is a paramount concern on campuses across the country.<\/p>\n<aside class=\"scaip scaip-1    \">\n\t\t<\/aside>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">At institutions like the University, where academic expectations are especially <a href=\"https:\/\/www.niche.com\/colleges\/university-of-michigan-ann-arbor\/\">rigorous<\/a>, this <a href=\"https:\/\/childandfamilyblog.com\/childrens-mental-health-high-achieving-schools-risk\/\">crisis<\/a> is inevitably <a href=\"https:\/\/web.colby.edu\/global-elites\/2021\/04\/12\/elite-schooling-and-mental-health-eliteness-at-what-cost\/\">exacerbated<\/a>. Academic pressure is <a href=\"https:\/\/www.michigandaily.com\/opinion\/columns\/the-curse-of-the-straight-a-student\/\">deeply woven<\/a> into campus culture. Between demanding classes, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.michigandaily.com\/special\/orientation-edition\/finding-your-place-on-campus-takes-time\/\">exclusive student organizations<\/a> and competition between peers, students can begin to correlate academic achievement with self-worth.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">For a university that has cultivated such a demanding environment, prioritizing mental health initiatives is a necessary part of sustaining academic excellence.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">If LSA recognizes that the pressure associated with grades can contribute to students\u2019 struggles, then reducing that pressure is a worthwhile first step. The program alone is certainly not enough to adequately address student mental health, and it has other drawbacks.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">As freshmen, it\u2019s natural to <a href=\"https:\/\/freshwriting.nd.edu\/essays\/why-is-adjusting-to-college-so-difficult-and-how-can-colleges-support-first-year-students\/\">struggle<\/a> \u2014 whether that be socially, academically or mentally. The transition to college is a major life adjustment, one that takes time acclimating to. Especially at the University, where classes are competitive and demanding, it\u2019s common for freshmen to feel overwhelmed with their coursework.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Struggling in a class, or receiving a disappointing grade can be frustrating and stressful, but it isn\u2019t uncommon or worthless. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.michigandaily.com\/opinion\/columns\/we-need-get-better-failing\/\">Failing<\/a> \u2014 whether that be substantial failure or a minor shortcoming \u2014 can be a formative experience, and can <a href=\"https:\/\/citl.news.niu.edu\/2025\/04\/17\/from-error-to-insight-the-role-of-mistakes-in-learning\/\">positively shape<\/a> the rest of your college years.\u00a0<\/p>\n<aside class=\"scaip scaip-2    \">\n\t\t<\/aside>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Plus, anxiety about schoolwork and achievement does not disappear after your first semester. It <a href=\"https:\/\/www.health.harvard.edu\/blog\/anxiety-in-college-what-we-know-and-how-to-cope-2019052816729\">impacts<\/a> students of all grade levels throughout their undergraduate experience.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Though covering grades may reduce academic stress for freshmen during their first semester, their grades will still appear on their transcript the following semester. Rather than guiding students through this adjustment period, equipping them with the tools to succeed or teaching how to persevere through failure, the University is merely delaying the inevitable. Freshmen will have to confront the reality of being a college student, whether or not they get to postpone it by a semester.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In order to effectively improve student mental health across the board, it is crucial that students have access to effective, adequately staffed mental health services when academic pressure becomes detrimental.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">There are several resources the University should enhance in conjunction with the program. Notably, the University\u2019s <a href=\"https:\/\/uhc.umich.edu\/counseling-psychological-services\">Counseling and Psychological Services<\/a> and other mental health resources have fallen short.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">CAPS resources include meetings with counselors for those who are struggling, so its programs should be easy for University students to utilize. However, steps like scheduling an initial appointment and establishing a relationship with the office prove to be more <a href=\"https:\/\/www.michigandaily.com\/opinion\/what-caps-gets-wrong\/\">difficult<\/a> than they should be, and students consistently express <a href=\"https:\/\/www.michigandaily.com\/news\/campus-life\/students-underutilize-alternative-mental-health-resources-create-their-own\/\">frustration<\/a> with the system.\u00a0<\/p>\n<aside class=\"scaip scaip-3    \">\n\t\t<\/aside>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">CAPS\u2019 <a href=\"https:\/\/uhc.umich.edu\/apa-internship\/service-delivery\">foundational design<\/a> is inherently flawed. It is catered toward short-term care and brief counseling, which may provide initial help but is ineffective for students in need of long-term guidance or who are in crisis. And even for baseline care, CAPS is strained. Long wait times and understaffing issues can leave many students without prompt or adequate help.<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Since LSA has made the decision to launch this pilot program in the name of student mental health, they should also make augmenting their own counseling programs a top priority. Students need support for all four years they spend at the University, and providing them with viable, easily accessible options is non-negotiable.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">As the University weighs how to deal with the student mental health crisis, investing time, money and manpower into improving resources like CAPS seems like a more productive step in aiding students. Although delaying some of the pressure of college may be beneficial for certain students, it is unlikely to truly alter their overall success for the next three years. While LSA displaying its commitment to student mental health via this program is a step in the right direction, it won\u2019t be as effective unless the school also expands campus mental health resources.\u00a0<\/p>\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><em>This editorial represents the opinion of The Michigan Daily\u2019s Summer Editorial Board. If you are interested in submitting an Op-Ed or Letter to the Editor, please send your submission to tothedaily@michigandaily.com.<\/em><\/p>\n<aside>\n\t\t<\/aside>\n<p><h3 class=\"jp-relatedposts-headline\"><em>Related articles<\/em><\/h3>\n<\/p><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>On Aug. 10, The University of Michigan School of Literature Science and the Arts announced that it will begin hiding\u00a0 first-semester grades for freshmen. Set to begin in fall of 2027, as part of a pilot program, external official transcripts will display first-semester grades as \u201cPass\u201d or \u201cNo credit\u201d and exclude letter grades from students\u2019 [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":6260,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[18],"tags":[192,5051,5401,736,1258,87],"class_list":["post-6259","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-news","tag-health","tag-lsa","tag-maintain","tag-mental","tag-momentum","tag-student"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/tmbglobal.news\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6259","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/tmbglobal.news\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/tmbglobal.news\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tmbglobal.news\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tmbglobal.news\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=6259"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/tmbglobal.news\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6259\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":6261,"href":"https:\/\/tmbglobal.news\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6259\/revisions\/6261"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tmbglobal.news\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/6260"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/tmbglobal.news\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=6259"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tmbglobal.news\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=6259"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/tmbglobal.news\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=6259"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}