The Campus Life and Wellbeing Collaborative (CLAW)
In alignment with the university’s Okanagan Charter commitment to embed wellbeing into all aspects of campus life, CLAW units and activities employ prevention‑oriented approaches that help students build the resilience, skills, and connections essential to a lifetime of flourishing.
Recreation and Wellbeing
Recreation and Wellbeing (RecWell) brings together campus recreation and health promotion to provide comprehensive recreation and student development opportunities plus exceptional programs, services, and facilities that promote and encourage a lifelong commitment to health and wellbeing.
Over 3,600 students visit RecWell each day. We offer more than 100 group fitness classes daily during fall and spring semesters. Upwards of 6,000 students take part in intramural sports and another 1,600 play club sports. Our adventure programs include off campus trips, the Rockwell climbing gym, and new NEST challenge course.
An analysis of full-time first-year students found that those who frequently visited RecWell had higher GPAs and better retention rates than students with fewer or no visits. In a 2024 survey, 81% of graduating seniors reported that RecWell supported their wellbeing (33% ‘to some extent’ and 48% ‘to a great extent’).
Center for Counseling and Psychological Health
The Center for Counseling and Psychological Health (CCPH) offers a community of care to UMass Amherst students to help cope with stress or anxiety, find strategies to overcome challenges, promote mental wellbeing, and succeed in college life and beyond.
CCPH serves about 3,000 students per year and delivers nearly 15,000 clinical appointments. We’ve revolutionized crisis support with a dedicated, 24/7 team of specialists and launched one of the nation’s first on-campus acute care programs, providing intensive, coordinated care for students in distress. Students who used CCPH services saw reductions in depression (25%), generalized anxiety (21%), and academic distress (17%).
Residential Life
Residential Life at UMass Amherst is the foundation of a thriving campus community — one intentionally designed to help students feel connected, supported, and authentically themselves. With more than 13,500 undergraduates (including 412 RAs and 59 Peer Mentors) calling our residence halls home, the scale is large, but the mission is deeply personal: to foster inclusive communities that cultivate learning and a powerful sense of belonging.
Being part of a campus community can be educational, insightful, and at times challenging, but offers many rewards and positive experiences. In spring 2025, 73% of residential students reported a strong sense of belonging and 88.4% said they can be their authentic selves in their residential community.
UMass Recovery
UMass Recovery started out as three students meeting by the Campus Pond and grew into a thriving community now serving over 40 students in recovery. Whether you are curious about your relationship with substances, ready to make a change, or sustaining long-term recovery, you belong here. As one founder noted, “The opposite of addiction is connection.”
UMass Recovery offers:
• Peer-led support groups
• Certified recovery coaching
• Community events and social activities
• A dedicated space where students feel they belong
Wellbeing in the Curriculum
Since 2023, nearly 3,000 students have enrolled in Science of Thriving (SoT) and Positivity and Relaxation Training (PART), courses that teach essential life skills such as social and emotional awareness, sleep hygiene, and stress management while building a sense of belonging and fostering meaningful connection among peers. The results speak for themselves:
• 40% increase in resilience
• 23% increase in their stress management
• 26% decrease in distress
• 86% feel more connected to peers
These aren't just statistics—they’re students learning skills that will sustain them throughout their lives.