WASHINGTON–  The BIG EAST Conference hosted its annual Student-Athlete Well Being Forum on June 10-11 on the campus of Providence College.  The BIG EAST organized this event for a third consecutive year and featured a diverse group of attendees, including industry leaders, campus counselors, coaches, doctors, athletic trainers, faculty and athletic administrators and the BIG EAST Student-Athlete Advisory Committee. 
 
This diverse group of attendees included several Hoyas proud to represent Georgetown at the forum. Attendees from the Blue & Gray included Women's Basketball Assistant Coach Niki Reid Geckeler, women's basketball player Sari Cureton, Tristian Forsythe of men's track & field, Associate Athletics Director for Student-Athlete Health and Wellness Shawn Hendi, team physician Dr. Blair Heinke, Head of Athletic Counseling Services Dr. Erica Force, Volleyball Head Coach Toby Rens, Women's Rowing Head Coach Kendall Mulligan, Director of Track & Field / Cross Country Julie Culley and Executive Director of the Cooper Athletics Leadership Program Dr. Maya Ozery.
 
"My experience at the well-being forum opened my eyes to the importance of the discussion of mental health within the athletics community and how dedicated the conference is to facilitating dialogue between athletes, administration and coaches," said Cureton. "I hope that moving forward we'll have more and more success with ending the stigma against mental health and providing more resources to promote the well-being of student-athletes."
 
The speakers for the Student-Athlete Well Being Forum included Matt Kudish, Executive Director of the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) of New York City. A respected speaker and educator, Kudish's work focuses on serving New Yorkers living with mental illness through innovative programming and partnerships with community-focused organizations. 
 
Kym and Mark Hilinski told the story of their son Tyler, a quarterback on the Washington State football team who died by suicide in 2018.  The family has created Hilinski's Hope, a non-profit foundation with the goal of keeping Tyler's memory alive and generating the funding necessary to support programs that will destigmatize mental illness.  Hilinski's Hope is teaming up with the NCAA Sports Science Institute to promote mental wellness in college sports.
 
The forum focused on the growing issues that affect the overall well being of student-athletes, including stress, sleep, injuries, mental wellness and other health matters.  Speakers detailed the best practices developed by the NCAA and BIG EAST institutions to ensure that adequate resources are accessible and made aware to all student-athletes.  The Student-Athlete Well Being Forum was held at Butler University last year and at Georgetown University two years ago.