Depression Grand Challenge

In 2019, after collecting a great deal of feedback about and experience with the initial implementation of the STAND system of care with the UCLA student body, the DGC secured funding from our generous donors to reimagine the way we would deliver cognitive behavioral strategies to participants leveraging technology. Funding was designated for both the delivery mechanism, which we refer to as the STAND platform, and for the content.

Discover Magazine’s Nov. 2019 issue highlighted the Depression Grand Challenge’s efforts to understand the genetic and environmental causes of depression, and mentioned the STAND system of care.

UCLA was among the campuses cited for its recognition of the need to deliver better and faster services to campus communities with the Depression Grand Challenge’s Screening and Treatment for Anxiety and Depression system of care.

In an article about resources being explored by UC Berkeley, The Daily Californian – the student-run newspaper at UC Berkeley – referenced the Depression Grand Challenge’s STAND program.

The funds will enable the DGC to upgrade the STAND Program (dubbed STAND 2.0), including an enhanced digital treatment platform and the creation of new algorithms and back-end tools.

The UCLA Depression Grand Challenge hosted a TEDxUCLA salon titled "Tackling Depression: Understanding, Preventing, and Treating the World’s Greatest Health Problem."

An Associated Press article highlighted how universities and companies across the nation — including UCLA — are developing smartphone technology to detect early signs of depression in younger generations.

The Depression Grand Challenge, in partnership with Counseling and Psychological Services, hosted parent and family workshops on October 26 and 27, 2018 during Bruin Family Weekend.

The University Network, a global media company for college students, featured the UCLA Depression Grand Challenge in the article “You’re Not Alone: Mental Illness Is Widespread At Universities.”