According to survey research conducted from May to July 2020, about one-third of students screened were found to have depression or anxiety or both at higher rates than seen in the past. According to the authors, this change is largely attributable to COVID-19 and was higher among students who did not adapt well to remote instruction (Chirikov et al., 2020). At campus counseling centers nationwide, students present anxiety (60.7 percent) as the most frequent concern, with depression (48.6 percent) and stress (47 percent) close behind, and the demand for counseling services is increasing (LeViness et al., 2020). It is not unusual for college students to use drugs and alcohol as an unhealthy coping strategy for mental health concerns.
Character (Still) Counts: Moral Injury and the Case for Character Education
Many academic leaders remember the Character Counts! initiative from the 1990s and early 2000s. It was visible in schools and youth programs nationwide, emphasizing as core values the Six Pillars
Teresa Maggard Stephens
June 15, 2026
