Surveys on college campuses around the country — and in Iowa – indicate anxiety and depression rates among students continue to rise. Toyia Younger is senior vice president for student affairs at Iowa State University. She says a relatively new self-help program for I-S-U students meets them where they are — online.

Helen Haire , director of the University of Northern Iowa’s department of public safety, says students are sometimes using drugs and alcohol to self-medicate and deal with their stress or mental health issues. During the calendar year 2020, there was a little bit of a decrease in alcohol-related arrests on the Cedar Falls campus, but a slight uptick in drug referrals.