U of T Scarborough student Maya Ahia is the recipient of the inaugural Kyriakos (Ken) Alexopoulos Memorial Award for Student Mental Health Research, an award supporting the Inlight Student Mental Health Research Initiative at the University of Toronto.
The award was created in 2022 to honour the legacy of Ken Alexopoulos, a compassionate individual who believed strongly in helping others especially those who were struggling with their mental health. By supporting research that fosters student mental health, the award will help young people to become resilient, creative, compassionate and strong individuals.
“Awards like the Alexopoulos Award are essential in supporting graduate students and their ability to pursue mental health research on our campuses. It is students who will become the next generation of leaders driving this critical area of research forward,” says Kristin Cleverley, Inlight’s director and associate professor in the Lawrence Bloomberg Faculty of Nursing.
Ahia, a 2023-2024 Inlight Research Fellowship recipient, is also being recognized with this award for the calibre of her Master’s research that sets out to examine access to accessibility support services for post-secondary students with a mental health related disability.
“Receiving this funding allows me to dedicate my time and energy to this research and enables me to ensure a hands-on and collaborative process with students and faculty,” says Ahia. “The goal of my projects is to see more accessible accommodations created for students.”
According to Ahia’s research the number of students registering for accessibility services is growing and there is a significant need to adjust support services to reflect this increase. To better understand exactly what support is needed in terms of accommodations, Ahia is surveying students from across the three campuses, focusing on students with mental-health related disabilities and their experiences accessing support.
Using a strengths-based approach, Ahia is also assessing how accessibility resources meet the range of diverse needs and lived experiences of post-secondary students. Early discussions with students have indicated a desire for more flexible models and tailored supports, as well as a reduction in barriers related to accessing support. Student engagement, Ahia says is central to her study, as is ongoing collaboration with mental health specialists, faculty, and student researchers.
“Accessibility services are key to the successful evolution of so many students,” says Ahia, “but I have also seen where there are gaps in support, and I hope that with my research, we can set in place scaffolding to improve the ways we support students.”
Mental health, Ahia adds, is a key determinant of overall health, and it is inspiring that initiatives such as Inlight, and the Kyriakos (Ken) Alexopoulos Award are helping to ensure a better mental health environment for all post-secondary students.
Read more at the Inlight Student Mental Health Research Initiative