St. Scholastica event to shed light on depression

By: Jana Hollingsworth , Duluth News Tribune

Timothy Miller dealt with depression for eight years before taking his own life last March at the College of St. Scholastica.

His death and the need for mental illness education on campus prompted students to form a chapter of Active Minds, a national group that raises awareness about depression and mental illness and aims to de-stigmatize both.

Its executive director, Alison Malmon, speaks today at 7 p.m. at St. Scholastica. Miller’s mother, Carol Miller, helped pay for the event through the fund she started for the school after her son’s death. The Timothy Martin Miller Fund will help pay for psychiatric treatment for students who can’t afford it and for Active Minds events at the school.

“Mental illness treatment is just not good in this country — we struggled to find a physician for years,” she said. “He was loved at Scholastica. He loved the kids there. It was the happiest he was. I don’t want one more death from this illness.”

Malmon, who founded the Active Minds organization after the 2001 suicide of her 22-year-old brother, said suicide is the second-leading cause of death among college students.

“Depression is immensely powerful and impacts students greatly,” she said. “This particular age group is susceptible because often they are on their own for the first time.”

Not knowing where to turn or who to talk to can be hugely stressful to some students, and it’s important for colleges to have accessible resources for those suffering from mental illness and depression, she said.

Malmon was to meet today with students and counselors from the University of Minnesota Duluth and Lake Superior College to talk about Active Minds chapters for their campuses. Colleges should treat mental illness as a public health concern throughout the school year, she said.

About 12 percent to 14 percent of the undergraduate population at St. Scholastica uses its counseling services, said Tad Sears, director of the Student Center for Health and Well-Being. After Miller’s death — the first suicide on campus — all counselors were called to the school and worked around the clock to meet with students. Resident advisers were trained to deal with grief and the college community was notified about what happened and how people could get help.

Something like the death of a student “reverberates very powerfully through our campus,” Sears said. “The outpouring of community and support was one of the most powerful experiences I have had in my life.”

Miller, 19, was a freshman English major who enjoyed playing guitar, writing his own music and singing.

“He was talented beyond belief,” Carol Miller said.

Sophomore Allie Landberg, a member of the Active Minds group, said she was a friend of Miller. His death brought to light what was available at St. Scholastica to deal with depression.

“Everybody was reaching out,” she said. “After Tim died, we realized we didn’t want anyone else to go through what our school went through and what his family went through. We want people to know depression is just like a physical illness and can be treated.”

Alison Malmon speaks at 7 p.m. today in the Mitchell Auditorium at the College of St. Scholastica. The executive director of Active Minds won the Washingtonian of the Year award in 2007. The free event is sponsored by the Timothy Martin Miller Fund and the Elizabeth C. Quinlan Foundation. Donations to Miller’s fund can be sent to St. Scholastica, 1200 Kenwood Ave., Duluth MN 55811, in care of the Timothy Martin Miller Fund.