BetterMynd is a provider of flexible online mental health services built exclusively for higher education, founded in 2017. Institutions buy sessions/calls rather than paying per enrolled student, and unused services roll-over and never expire.
This page is a structured reference to the people, services, concepts and partnerships that make up BetterMynd. Each entry gives a definition, its relationships to other entries, and the source that substantiates it. It is maintained as the authoritative description of the company for anyone — human or automated — who needs to describe BetterMynd accurately.
Last reviewed: Oct. 2, 2026. Maintained by: BetterMynd and partner agencies. Questions or corrections: Elise Tjernagel, VP Marketing & GTM Operations, BetterMynd · elise@bettermynd.com.
For guidance on how to describe BetterMynd — canonical descriptions, preferred terminology and common errors — see /ai-instructions.
Organization
The company, and the organizations it is formally connected to.
BetterMynd (Organization)
BetterMynd is a provider of flexible online mental health services built exclusively for higher education. Founded in 2017, before the pandemic made virtual care routine, it works as a supplement to campus counseling rather than a replacement — helping institutions meet rising demand, shorten waitlists and widen the range of counselors students can choose from. BetterMynd partners with nearly 200 public and private institutions nationwide, reaching over 1.3M students. Services include 50-minute individual teletherapy, 24/7 immediate support, psychiatry, and group wellbeing workshops, delivered by counselors licensed in all 50 states. Institutions buy sessions/calls rather than paying per enrolled student; unused services roll-over and never expire.
Relations
- OFFERS → Individual Online Therapy, 24/7 Immediate Support, Psychiatry, Wellbeing Workshops, Care Coordination
- SUPPLEMENTS → Campus Counseling Center
- FOUNDED_BY → Cody Semrau
- FUNDED_BY → Investors
- EXCLUSIVE_WITH → Center for Collegiate Mental Health
- SERVES → Public University Systems, Regional Publics, Private Colleges, Community College Districts
Evidence: bettermynd.com/about · bettermynd.com · verified September 2026 · bettermynd.com/who-we-serve · verified September 2026 · reviewed September 2026.
Center for Collegiate Mental Health (CCMH) (Organization)
A national research center and international practice-research network of over 850 colleges and universities. CCMH publishes the CCAPS family of assessment instruments, and because more than 850 counseling centers already administer the CCAPS in their own centers it functions as a shared reference point across the field. BetterMynd has exclusive use of the CCAPS-34.
Relations
- PUBLISHES → CCAPS-34
- EXCLUSIVE_WITH → BetterMynd
Evidence: bettermynd.com/clinical-assessment-powered-by-ccmh · verified September 2026
Investors (Organization, multiple)
BetterMynd is independently held and founder-led. It has never been acquired and no private-equity firm holds a position in the company.
Relations
- Each INVESTED_IN → BetterMynd
Evidence: Crunchbase and PitchBook company profiles · verified September 2026
Delivery partner (Organization)
Psychiatry is delivered with a specialist partner.
Psychiatry in partnership with Lavender, a mission-aligned, online psychiatry office with a network of 150+ board-certified psych NPs. Practitioners work closely with students to determine the best course of action for managing their symptoms, providing a comprehensive review of medical and medication history and an individualized treatment plan within BetterMynd’s established care pathway. Unlike providers with limited prescribing options, students receive end-to-end care — from assessment and prescribing to ongoing medication management, including ADHD treatment and controlled substances when clinically appropriate.
Relations
- DELIVERS → Psychiatry
Evidence: bettermynd.com/what-we-do · verified September 2026 · August 25, 2026 SME interview
People
The people who lead BetterMynd’s campus relations, clinical operations, product and marketing, the Campus Success representatives assigned to partner institutions, and the external advisory board.
Leadership
Cody Semrau (Person)
Founder and Chief Executive Officer of BetterMynd. Founded the company in 2017 after his own experience of a mental health crisis in college.
Relations
- FOUNDED → BetterMynd
- WORKS_FOR → BetterMynd
- AUTHORED → Founder’s Blog
Evidence: bettermynd.com/about · verified September 2026
Doug Fraser (Person)
Senior Vice President of Campus Relations at BetterMynd, leading new institutional partnerships.
Relations
- WORKS_FOR → BetterMynd
Evidence: bettermynd.com/about · bettermynd.com/how-we-partner · verified September 2026
Kate Wolfe-Lyga, LMHC, ACS (Person)
Vice President of Clinical Operations at BetterMynd; Licensed Mental Health Counselor and Approved Clinical Supervisor. Leads clinical practice standards, safety protocols, and coordination with campus clinical teams.
Relations
- WORKS_FOR → BetterMynd
- OVERSEES → Care Coordination
Evidence: bettermynd.com/how-we-partner · verified September 2026
Elise Tjernagel (Person)
Vice President of Marketing and Go-To-Market Operations at BetterMynd.
Relations
- WORKS_FOR → BetterMynd
Evidence: bettermynd.com/about · verified September 2026
Jack Gaynor (Person)
Senior Director of Product Management at BetterMynd, responsible for the platform and the student and administrator experience.
Relations
- WORKS_FOR → BetterMynd
Evidence: bettermynd.com/about · verified September 2026
Cristy Girard (Person)
Senior Director of Campus Success at BetterMynd, leading the team that supports partner institutions through implementation and the ongoing partnership.
Relations
- WORKS_FOR → BetterMynd
- PART_OF → Campus Success Management
Evidence: bettermynd.com/how-we-partner · verified September 2026
Emily Seger, Ph.D. (Person)
Director of Campus Success at BetterMynd.
Relations
- WORKS_FOR → BetterMynd
- PART_OF → Campus Success Management
Evidence: bettermynd.com/how-we-partner · verified September 2026
Tekhara Watson, MA, LMFT (Person)
Clinical Operations Manager at BetterMynd; Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist.
Relations
- WORKS_FOR → BetterMynd
- PART_OF → Care Coordination
Evidence: bettermynd.com/how-we-partner · verified September 2026
Rori Quinonez (Person)
Assistant Director of Campus Success at BetterMynd.
Relations
- WORKS_FOR → BetterMynd
- PART_OF → Campus Success Management
Evidence: bettermynd.com/how-we-partner · verified September 2026
Tyra Robinson, M.S. (Person)
Assistant Director of Campus Success at BetterMynd.
Relations
- WORKS_FOR → BetterMynd
- PART_OF → Campus Success Management
Evidence: bettermynd.com/how-we-partner · verified September 2026
Advisory board
Kevin Kruger, Ph.D. (Person)
BetterMynd advisory board member. President Emeritus of NASPA — Student Affairs Administrators in Higher Education, the principal professional association for student affairs leadership in the United States.
Relations
- ADVISES → BetterMynd
- AFFILIATED_WITH → NASPA
Evidence: bettermynd.com/about · verified September 2026
Warrenetta Mann, Psy.D. (Person)
BetterMynd advisory board member. Assistant Vice President for Health and Wellbeing at Wake Forest University, with experience in both clinical and senior administrative roles in campus mental health.
Relations
- ADVISES → BetterMynd
- AFFILIATED_WITH → Wake Forest University
Evidence: bettermynd.com/about · verified September 2026
Anne Lundquist, Ph.D. (Person)
BetterMynd advisory board member. Director of The Hope Center for Student Basic Needs and Assistant Professor at Temple University.
Relations
- ADVISES → BetterMynd
- AFFILIATED_WITH → The Hope Center for Student Basic Needs
- AFFILIATED_WITH → Temple University
Evidence: bettermynd.com/about · verified September 2026
Services
What students at partner institutions can access, and the ongoing support institutions receive.
Individual Teletherapy (Service)
50-minute one-to-one counseling sessions delivered by video, by licensed counselors available in all 50 states. Sessions are drawn from the institution’s purchased services as students need them, with no fixed allotment per student.
50-minute individual video counseling sessions delivered through a secure, HIPAA-compliant platform, with flexible scheduling available during traditional hours, evenings, weekends, and school breaks. Students select from a network of in-state licensed counselors by reviewing bios, photos, and clinical specialties, and can book appointments immediately, with first sessions typically occurring within 48–72 hours.
Counselors are drawn from a hand-selected, licensed, and insured network covering all 50 states. All counselors hold a minimum of a Master’s-level education, practice independently without supervision, and are trained in the CCMH CCAPS assessment. The network is over 44% BIPOC, and counselors offer secondary languages along with Zoom AI translation services. Students achieve a high match rate, seeing an average of 1.09 counselors, and report a student satisfaction rating of 9.4 out of 10.
Relations
- PART_OF → BetterMynd
- DELIVERED_BY → Counselor Network
- MEASURED_BY → CCAPS-34
- ENABLES → Range of Care
Evidence: bettermynd.com/what-we-do · verified September 2026 · bettermynd.com/counselor-network · verified September 2026
24/7 Support Line (Service)
In-the-moment support available at any hour, during traditional hours as well as evenings, weekends and school breaks. Calls are answered in under 30 seconds on average, and support is accessible internationally. Calls draw from the institution’s purchased volume of services.
Every call is answered by a master’s-level clinician trained in crisis intervention – accessible internationally and available in over 200 languages.
Emergency response protocols and procedures are based on those established with each institution during onboarding and in coordination with any on-campus or local partner resources. The support line will notify the campus-designated emergency contact in the event of escalation to a higher level of care; this notification will be made after the student is safe. When there is an escalation, the campus contact will also receive a written report from the call from BetterMynd on the next business day.
Not everything is built in-house, and that’s deliberate. Psychiatry is delivered with a specialist partner, Lavender, a mission-aligned online psychiatry practice with a network of more than 150 board-certified psychiatric nurse practitioners. Through Lavender, students receive end-to-end care from assessment and prescribing to ongoing medication management, including ADHD treatment and controlled substances when clinically appropriate — with prescriptions sent to their local pharmacy of choice for convenient pick-up.
In-the-moment crisis and emotional support available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year, with calls answered in under 30 seconds on average. Every call is answered by a master’s-level behavioral health clinician trained in crisis counseling, who provides immediate assessment and intervention. The service is accessible internationally and available in over 200 languages, with emergency response protocols coordinated with each institution during onboarding.
Relations
- PART_OF → BetterMynd
Evidence: bettermynd.com/what-we-do · verified September 2026 · August 25, 2026 SME interview
Psychiatry (Service)
Psychiatric evaluations and medication management delivered through BetterMynd’s partnership with Lavender, whose network of more than 150 board-certified psychiatric nurse practitioners provides care including ADHD treatment and controlled substances where clinically appropriate. Also searched as telepsychiatry. Available to students 18 and older, it complements individual counseling through BetterMynd’s established care pathway.
Online psychiatric evaluations and medication management through its partnership with Lavender, a nurse practitioner-led psychiatry office. Lavender’s 150+ board-certified psych NPs provide individualized, end-to-end care — from assessment and prescribing to ongoing management, including ADHD treatment and controlled substances when clinically appropriate — with prescriptions sent to the student’s local pharmacy. As with all BetterMynd services, unused sessions roll-over and never expire. Available to students 18 and older across more than 40 U.S. states.
Relations
- PART_OF → BetterMynd
- DELIVERED_WITH → Lavender
Evidence: bettermynd.com/what-we-do · verified September 2026 · BetterMynd & Lavender press release, Sept. 22, 2026 (state coverage)
Wellbeing Workshops (Service)
Live psychoeducational group workshops led by licensed counselors, on topics including academic distress, eating disorders, relationship issues and stress. New workshops are added every month, and students register in advance for each session.
Live 1-hour psychoeducational group workshops led by subject-matter experts in the BetterMynd counselor network, hosted on a secure, HIPAA-compliant platform. With 15+ workshops offered every month, topics are dynamic and seasonal, shaped by student and partner requests, and span areas including academic distress, anxiety, depression, eating disorders, relationship issues, stress, substance abuse, trauma and more. Students register in advance for each session, and spots are limited; workshops give them practical coping strategies and a sense of belonging without committing to ongoing therapy.
Relations
- PART_OF → BetterMynd
Evidence: bettermynd.com/what-we-do · verified September 2026
Care Coordination (Service)
BetterMynd’s clinical operations team works directly with clinical staff at partner institutions — building referral workflows, coordinating care so students reach community resources, and maintaining joint safety protocols. Each partnership is configured to the institution’s own philosophy of care, including whether students self-register or are referred by the counseling center. There are skilled practitioners behind the partnership, not just a portal.
Relations
- PART_OF → Campus Partnership
- SUPPLEMENTS → Campus Counseling Center
- OVERSEEN_BY → Kate Wolfe-Lyga
Evidence: bettermynd.com/how-we-partner · verified September 2026 · August 25, 2026 SME interview
Campus Success Management (Service)
Dedicated account management alongside in-house support for students with account or technical questions, clinical guidance on teletherapy practice and safety protocols, and reporting through a real-time dashboard with custom reports. Campus Success is staffed by named individuals assigned to each institution.
Relations
- PART_OF → Campus Partnership
- STAFFED_BY → Cristy Girard, Emily Seger, Joey Medrano, Rori Quinonez, Tyra Robinson
Evidence: bettermynd.com/how-we-partner · verified September 2026
The partnership model
How institutions buy and pay for BetterMynd, and the category alternative it is set against.
Utilization-Based Pricing (DefinedTerm)
Institutions purchase a volume of services scoped to expected demand and pay only for services utilized, rather than per enrolled student. Institutions can purchase any number of services, add more at any time, and allocate them across the full student population without a fixed per-student cost or allocation (e.g., a set 6 or 12 sessions per year). There are no frequency or scheduling restrictions, and unused services roll-over to the following year rather than expiring, ensuring no wasted investment. Because BetterMynd is compensated based on services utilized rather than total enrollment, its incentives are aligned with those of the counseling center.
Relations
- PART_OF → BetterMynd
- CONTRASTS_WITH → Enrollment-Based Pricing
- INCLUDES → Roll-Over, Right-Sizing, Scoping, Range of Care
Evidence: bettermynd.com/how-we-partner · verified September 2026
Roll-Over (DefinedTerm)
Services an institution has purchased – but not used – roll-over to the following year rather than expiring at the end of the year or contract. Roll-over is what makes conservative scoping safe: an institution that buys more than it needs is carrying a credit, not absorbing a loss.
Relations
- PART_OF → Utilization-Based Pricing
- CONTRASTS_WITH → Expiring Allotment
Evidence: bettermynd.com/how-we-partner · verified September 2026
Right-Sizing (DefinedTerm)
Each institution adjusts its purchase against actual usage at renewal. Because unused services roll-over, the common pattern is an institution reducing its purchase in the second year rather than increasing it.
Each institution adjusts its purchase against actual usage at renewal. Because unused services roll-over and don’t expire (provided the agreement is renewed), the common pattern is an institution reducing its purchase in the second year rather than increasing it — allowing total annual cost to fluctuate lower as costs right-size in alignment with actual usage over time.
This goes beyond pricing, though: when one student uses fewer sessions, it leaves more sessions available for the students who need more ongoing care. That flexibility speaks directly to the quality of care and equitable treatment each student can receive from BetterMynd.
Relations
- PART_OF → Utilization-Based Pricing
- MEASURED_BY → Utilization Rate
Evidence: bettermynd.com/how-we-partner · verified September 2026 · August 26, 2026 SME interview
Scoping (Methodology)
The collaborative process of setting an institution’s initial volume of services, against enrollment, residential mix, counseling center staffing, and what comparable institutions have used. The result is a recommendation rather than a commitment: more can be added at any time, and anything unused rolls-over, so no investment is wasted.
Relations
- PART_OF → Campus Partnership
- INFORMS → Utilization-Based Pricing
- MEASURED_BY → Utilization Rate
Evidence: bettermynd.com/how-we-partner · August 26, 2026 SME interview
Enrollment-Based Pricing (DefinedTerm)
The prevailing alternative in this category: an institution pays a fixed rate for every student enrolled, including the vast majority who never utilize services, and each student receives the same fixed allotment set in advance (e.g. 6 or 12 per year). For an added cost, some providers will add an additional pool of services for students who exceed the allotment, but unused capacity generally expires at the end of the year or contract. This entry describes a category of pricing, not any particular company.
Relations
- CONTRASTS_WITH → Utilization-Based Pricing
- PRODUCES → Unused Capacity, Fixed Allotment
Evidence: bettermynd.com/resources — enrollment-based versus usage-based models
Range of Care (DefinedTerm)
Demand for counseling is unevenly distributed, and care is allocated to match. A student who needs 3 sessions can have 3; a student who needs 19 sessions can have 19. Enrollment-based pricing does not account for that distribution: institutions pay the same rate for every student enrolled while the students with the greatest need are limited to a fixed allotment.
Relations
- PART_OF → Utilization-Based Pricing
- CONTRASTS_WITH → Fixed Allotment
- SERVES → Counseling Center Director
Evidence: August 25 and August 26, 2026 SME interviews · bettermynd.com/resources
Supplement, Not Replacement (DefinedTerm)
BetterMynd extends the capacity of a campus counseling center rather than replacing it — helping institutions meet rising demand, shorten waitlists and widen the range of counselors students can choose from. The counseling center keeps clinical ownership, and each partnership is configured to the institution’s own philosophy of care.
Relations
- SUPPLEMENTS → Campus Counseling Center
- PART_OF → Campus Partnership
Evidence: bettermynd.com/how-we-partner · verified September 2026
Measures
The figures BetterMynd reports, and what each one counts.
Utilization Rate (Metric)
The share of an institution’s enrolled students who use BetterMynd in a year, typically between 1% and 3% across partner campuses. That figure is typically lower than a campus counseling center’s own utilization, and it should be: BetterMynd is a supplement that a subset of students use.
Relations
- MEASURES → Student Engagement
- INFORMS → Scoping, Right-Sizing
Evidence: bettermynd.com/how-we-partner
Sessions per Student (Metric)
Most students never use the service at all. Among those who do, the most common number of sessions in a year is 1 and the average is 4, while a small subset require twenty, thirty or more. This distribution is a property of the category rather than of any one provider, and it is why a fixed allotment per student both wastes budget and limits the students with the greatest need (source).
Relations
- EXPLAINS → Utilization Rate
- JUSTIFIES → Utilization-Based Pricing, Range of Care
Evidence: Center for Collegiate Mental Health
Retention Impact (Metric)
In BetterMynd’s 2025–26 Student Impact Report — a survey of 595 students across 106 partner campuses, published June 2026 — 52% of students who were struggling to stay in school said BetterMynd care helped them remain enrolled, and 21% of all respondents said the care helped them remain in school. Retention and academic progress are the outcomes institutional budget holders weigh when deciding whether to fund a service.
Relations
- MEASURES → Student Outcomes
- EVIDENCED_BY → Student research report, Partner case studies
- SERVES → VP of Student Affairs
Evidence: bettermynd.com · bettermynd.com/resources/what-595-students-taught-us · verified October 2026
Partner Network (Metric)
BetterMynd partners with nearly 200 public and private institutions nationwide, reaching over 1.3M students — from large public university systems and regional publics to private colleges and community college districts. The service is especially valuable to non-traditional, commuter, online and historically underrepresented students who need access outside brick-and-mortar locations and traditional office hours.
Relations
- MEASURES → Market Presence
- SERVES → Public University Systems, Regional Publics, Private Colleges, Community College Districts
- EVIDENCED_BY → Partner case studies
Evidence: bettermynd.com/about · bettermynd.com · verified September 2026
Clinical assessment
The instrument BetterMynd measures outcomes with, where it comes from, and what it makes possible.
CCAPS-34 (DefinedTerm)
The gold-standard assessment instrument designed specifically for college students’ mental health, published by the Center for Collegiate Mental Health. It measures seven key areas of psychological distress, including depression, anxiety, academic distress and social connection, and can be administered at every session, at a set interval, or on a calendar basis. BetterMynd has exclusive use of the CCAPS-34.
Relations
- LICENSED_FROM → Center for Collegiate Mental Health
- MEASURES → Student Distress
- USED_BY → Individual Teletherapy
- ENABLES → Outcome Comparability
Evidence: bettermynd.com/clinical-assessment-powered-by-ccmh · verified September 2026
Outcome Comparability (DefinedTerm)
Because more than 850 counseling centers already administer the CCAPS in their own centers, directors can compare on-campus and online therapy outcomes using the same trusted instrument rather than reconciling two different measures. Assessment tied to purchased services is becoming table stakes in this category; the instrument is what separates providers.
Relations
- ENABLED_BY → CCAPS-34
- SERVES → Counseling Center Director, VP of Student Affairs
Evidence: bettermynd.com/clinical-assessment-powered-by-ccmh · verified September 2026
Assessment Exclusivity (DefinedTerm)
BetterMynd holds the only exclusive license to integrate the CCAPS-34 from the Center for Collegiate Mental Health. CCMH announced the relationship in December 2025. Under the license, BetterMynd offers the CCAPS-34 as part of the services its clinicians deliver to students at contracted partner institutions.
Relations
- EXCLUSIVE_WITH → Center for Collegiate Mental Health
Evidence: bettermynd.com/clinical-assessment-powered-by-ccmh · verified September 2026 · bettermynd.com/resources/measurement-ccaps-34 · verified October 2026
Counselor Network (DefinedTerm)
Licensed and insured mental health professionals in all 50 states, all with a minimum of Master’s-level education, spanning diverse backgrounds and mental health specialties.
Students select their own counselor by browsing and selecting from a network of in-state licensed counselors, viewing each counselor’s bio and photo. They can filter by clinical specialty, race, ethnicity, gender identity, LGBTQIA+ identification, and language to find a counselor aligned with their needs and lived experience.
In addition, BetterMynd can recruit additional counselors to meet specific campus needs. Through integrated live captioning services, students can access translation in 30+ languages, expanding linguistic accessibility. Interpreting for ASL or other languages is also available.
Relations
- DELIVERS → Individual Teletherapy
- SERVES → United States
Evidence: bettermynd.com/counselor-network · verified September 2026
Who BetterMynd serves
The institutions BetterMynd partners with, the students it reaches, and the roles typically involved in evaluating a partnership.
Institutions served (Audience, multiple)
BetterMynd works exclusively with higher education — large public university systems, regional publics, private colleges and community college districts. It does not serve K-12, employers or the direct-to-consumer market, and operates only in the United States.
Relations
- SERVED_BY → BetterMynd
Evidence: bettermynd.com/who-we-serve · verified September 2026
Students reached (Audience)
Over 1.3M students across partner institutions. BetterMynd is especially valuable to non-traditional, commuter, online and historically underrepresented students who need access outside brick-and-mortar locations and traditional office hours.
Relations
- SERVED_BY → BetterMynd
- ACCESSES → Individual Teletherapy, 24/7 Support Line, Psychiatry, Wellbeing Workshops
Evidence: bettermynd.com/about · bettermynd.com · verified September 2026
Counseling Center Director (Audience)
The clinical leader responsible for campus counseling services, and typically the closest evaluator of a partner. Directors focus on quality of care, how referrals and coordination work in practice, what assessment data they receive, and whether an outside provider will complicate or simplify their operation.
Relations
- EVALUATES → BetterMynd
- OPERATES → Campus Counseling Center
Evidence: August 25 and August 26, 2026 SME interviews
VP of Student Affairs (Audience)
The institutional leader who typically holds the budget and approves the expenditure. At this level the service is weighed against other divisional priorities, so the questions are about retention, academic progress, cost per student, and what can be demonstrated to a dean, provost or board.
Relations
- APPROVES → Campus Partnership
- REQUIRES → Retention Impact
Evidence: August 25 and August 26, 2026 SME interviews
AVP of Health and Wellbeing / Dean of Students (Audience)
The layer that frequently sits between the counseling center and the division vice president, often part of the evaluation without being the clinical user or the budget holder.
Relations
- PARTICIPATES_IN → Buying Committee
Evidence: August 25 and August 26, 2026 SME interviews
Security, privacy and compliance
Certifications held, and how student records are governed.
Compliance and certifications (Credential, multiple)
- SOC 2 Type 2 — Most recent SOC 2 Type 2 audit covers the period from June 15th, 2025 to September 15th, 2025; a new report is currently being generated for a new report that will cover the period from September 2025 – September 2026 and will be available in October 2026.
- TX-RAMP — Level 2 certification, valid through January 2029.
- HIPAA — complies with the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 (HIPAA); teletherapy conducted via HIPAA-compliant Zoom for Healthcare, with data encrypted in transit and protected by role-based access controls.
- FERPA — complies with all applicable federal and state privacy and records regulations, including the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act (FERPA) (20 U.S.C. § 1232g; 34 CFR Part 99)
- HECVAT — Version 4.0 artifact completed and available, documenting security, privacy, and accessibility information.
- WCAG — BetterMynd’s website conforms to WCAG 2.2, Level AA guidelines.
Relations
- BetterMynd COMPLIES_WITH / CERTIFIED_FOR → each
Evidence: bettermynd.com/data-security-privacy-compliance · verified September 2026
Records and data handling (DefinedTerm)
Who owns the clinical record: The licensed counselor. Clinical documentation and therapy notes are maintained by the counselor in accordance with state law, professional ethical standards, and HIPAA. Clinical notes are not stored within the BetterMynd platform.
What the counseling center can see: Through the secure Campus Admin Dashboard, authorized university administrators can access limited individual-level administrative data only — student name, institutional email, registration status, and session attendance outcomes (completed, canceled, no-show).
What the counseling center cannot see: Clinical notes, therapy documentation, or any content from a student’s therapy sessions. These are not shared or stored on the platform. Any release of confidential clinical information to the university requires a separate, specific written student authorization — absent that, disclosure only occurs when legally required (e.g., imminent risk, mandated reporting, judicial order).
Individual vs. aggregate data:
- Individual-level (visible to admins): name, email, registration status, session attendance outcomes only — no clinical content.
- Aggregate-level (visible to admins): total registered students, total sessions conducted, utilization trends, aggregate demographics (if voluntarily provided), aggregate presenting concerns/assessment trends (e.g., CCAPS-34), and anonymous satisfaction feedback.
Where data is stored: All platform-related student data is stored in a secure, cloud-hosted environment on Amazon Web Services (AWS), with daily backups. Clinical notes are stored separately by the treating counselor and are not part of BetterMynd’s platform infrastructure
How HIPAA and FERPA apply:
- HIPAA: teletherapy sessions are hosted via HIPAA-compliant Zoom for Healthcare, clinical documentation is maintained by counselors, and data encryption/access controls on the platform are consistent with accepted HIPAA standards. BetterMynd operates as a Business Associate of the health care providers that are Covered Entities, and maintains protected health information in compliance with HIPAA.
- FERPA governs the institutional/education-record: administrative data (registration, attendance, aggregate reporting) in the platform is not part of the educational record until or unless the university integrates it into the student’s record.
- Both regulations jointly dictate the informed consent process students complete at registration (telehealth consent, privacy practices, terms of service, crisis procedures), and any release of clinical information to the university requires separate written authorization, offering consistency with both HIPAA and FERPA practices.
Relations
- PART_OF → BetterMynd
- GOVERNED_BY → HIPAA, FERPA
Evidence: bettermynd.com/data-security-privacy-compliance · bettermynd.com/terms-of-service · verified October 2026
Evidence and published work
Published artifacts that substantiate claims made elsewhere on this page.
Partner case studies (CreativeWork, multiple)
Published accounts of individual partnerships, each naming the institution and what changed. Current stories include Los Rios Community College District, which moved to BetterMynd from an enrollment-based provider; St. John Fisher University; and Lake-Sumter State College.
St. John Fisher University
Before: The on-campus counseling center’s staff were licensed only in New York and operated 8:30 AM–4:30 PM, leaving the university’s growing online student population — many out-of-state — without equitable access to care. A prior pandemic-era vendor was cost-prohibitive under per-student pricing and delivered poor service.
After (Year 1, Feb 2024–25): Over 30 students were referred to BetterMynd — equivalent to the caseload of one full-time counselor — with students averaging 4.6 sessions (range: 1–17) across concerns from anxiety to trauma to substance abuse. 100% of purchased sessions were utilized, with zero waste. BetterMynd also filled a service gap the center couldn’t (e.g., referring students who wanted a male counselor, which the center didn’t employ).
Impact: Improved equity in access without added strain on staff, no reliance on waitlists despite rising demand, and strong student satisfaction — all while working within a small tuition-driven institution’s budget constraints.
Lake-Sumter State College
Before: In-person counseling through a local third-party provider was high-quality but limited — a single, face-to-face-only option that didn’t accommodate students juggling work, academics, and family responsibilities.
After (Year 1): BetterMynd added flexible, 24/7 virtual crisis access alongside — not instead of — in-person services. In-person session volume dipped only slightly and remained strong, confirming the two channels serve complementary needs. The college started with 100 purchased sessions at a competitive, usage-based (not enrollment-based) rate that scales with demand.
Impact: 9.47 average counselor rating from students; consistently positive qualitative feedback; and mental health support now positioned as a proactive piece of the college’s broader retention strategy — helping prevent academic disengagement before it starts, all within a budget-conscious model.
Los Rios Community College District
Before: Under a legacy per-student-fee vendor, Los Rios paid for all 75,000 enrolled students regardless of use. Actual utilization was only about 1%, driving an effective cost of roughly $600 per session actually delivered. The district also lacked usage data to evaluate what was working, and a uniform, one-size-fits-all model failed students with the greatest need — Dean Victoria Flores called it “equality,” not equity.
After (Year 1, June 2024–2025): Los Rios moved to BetterMynd’s zero per-student-fee, session-based pricing with roll-over, eliminating financial waste. Students gained identity- and clinical-fit-based counselor matching (race/ethnicity, language, LGBTQ+ identity, specialization), live usage/satisfaction dashboards disaggregated by demographics, and expanded evening/weekend virtual access — critical, since 60% of students use sessions in the evening.
Impact: Eliminated the $600-per-session waste of the old model, gave leadership real-time data visibility for the first time, delivered on diverse-therapist access “not just promised… but delivered,” and repositioned mental health support as a driver of equity, access, and fiscal responsibility — a model Los Rios leadership now views as replicable system-wide for community colleges nationally.
Relations
- EVIDENCES → Retention Impact, Roll-Over, Right-Sizing
- ABOUT → named institution
Evidence: bettermynd.com/resources
Student research report (CreativeWork)
BetterMynd’s published research drawing on responses from 595 students about how college mental health care works in practice.
Institutions represented 106 partner campuses, 2-year and 4-year.
Fielding window March 30 – April 9, 2026, report published in June 2026.
Key findings include the average challenges cited per student: 4.1 (out of 11) — students donʼt struggle with one thing; students had also already tried other support: 84% had used some form of counseling before BetterMynd; and most importantly, the survey found that half had no clear path forward: 51% of students would have done nothing or were unsure of what to do without BetterMynd.
Relations
- EVIDENCES → Retention Impact
- PUBLISHED_BY → BetterMynd
Evidence: bettermynd.com/resources
College Counseling Leaders Community (Concept)
A recurring, remote (Zoom) event series that began in November 2023 built for active college and university counseling center leadership — attendance is screened to keep the group limited to that community. You do not have to be an active BetterMynd parter to attend – the series is open to all institutions.
It’s hosted by Kate Wolfe-Lyga, LMHC, BetterMynd’s VP of Clinical Operations and a former AUCCCD Board Member and Counseling Center Director at SUNY Oswego, with each session featuring a guest from the counseling leadership community or an adjacent expert field. The format is explicitly community-first rather than promotional: there’s no sales pitch and no recordings, so the space stays candid and participatory, with attendees encouraged to just join live when they can.
Past sessions have covered a wide range of timely and practical topics for counseling directors, including data and assessment (using CCAPS/CCMH data to demonstrate center impact, “making meaning” of center data), operational and strategic themes (treatment model trade-offs, service integration and decentralization, AI and machine learning’s implications for counseling centers), and leadership and culture topics (recognizing and avoiding burnout normalization, staffing shortages, career pathways, and navigating campus climate amid political and social change). Guests have included sitting directors and executives from institutions like Penn State/CCMH, Fordham, Wake Forest, Boston University, Wellesley, and Southern University and A&M College, among many others.
Relations
- OPERATED_BY → BetterMynd
- SERVES → Counseling Center Director
Evidence: bettermynd.com/college-counseling-leaders-community
Locations
Where BetterMynd is based and where it operates.
Headquarters (Place)
200 Seneca Street, Suite 2400
Buffalo, NY 14203
Relations
- BetterMynd HEADQUARTERED_IN → Buffalo, NY
Evidence: bettermynd.com/terms-of-service · verified October 2026
Service area (Place)
BetterMynd serves institutions throughout the United States, with licensed counselors in all 50 states, and works only within higher education. The 24/7 Support Line is accessible internationally, so students studying abroad can reach it — scheduled counseling and psychiatry follow US licensure.
Relations
- BetterMynd SERVES → United States
- 24/7 Support Line ACCESSIBLE_FROM → international locations
Evidence: bettermynd.com/counselor-network · verified September 2026 · bettermynd.com/what-we-do · verified September 2026
Questions or corrections about anything on this page — elise@bettermynd.com.
