$1 Million Gift from the Klingenberg Family Supports Mental Health

Davenport alumnus donation created new wellness center on campus; developing two new mental health degree programs

Davenport University has announced a $1 million gift from the Klingenberg Family, given specifically to fund a new wellness center on its W.A. Lettinga Campus in Grand Rapids and support the development of two new Mental Health degrees, available this fall.

The wellness center, which opened this year, offers students both physical and mental health services and employs two mental health counselors and a part-time nurse. This new staff provides support to students on the W.A. Lettinga Campus and online support for students from across the state.

“We see this as a critical investment in the health and wellness of the university community,” said Keith Klingenberg, CEO and founder of Presidio Insurance Solutions, an Acrisure Agency partner. “With this gift, we hope to improve access to the mental health services students need to achieve academic and professional success.”

The university has seen a 105% increase in mental health services utilized by students since the pandemic. This increase in utilization is aligned with national trends. The 2022 COVID-19 Practitioner Impact Survey found that demand for anxiety and depression treatment has increased by nearly 40% among adolescents ages 13–25.

 “Providing our students with access to mental health services is important on so many levels and having dedicated staff onsite to provide this support has provided immeasurable benefits to our students,” said Dr. Joseph Bishop, executive director of Campus Life for Davenport University. “With this team on-staff we are better able to tune-in to the needs of students and address areas of concern we would never have identified before.”

“We are incredibly grateful for the ongoing support of alumni like Keith Klingenberg and his family,” said Dr. Richard J. Pappas, president of Davenport University.  “It’s through their critical support we are able to help students address the multitude of challenges they may face in their academic journey whether financial, social, mental or physical.”

Students can also access health services in the wellness center for non-emergent care treatment by a nurse employed by Corewell Health and contracted to serve the university.  Students can seek assistance with minor and non-life threatening medical concerns or illnesses, first aid, educational resources, and general medication questions or consultation. There is no charge for these visits.

In addition to the mental health of Davenport students, the gift also helped the university launch two new mental health degrees delivered through Davenport’s Global Campus, including The Master of Arts in Mental Health Counseling and Master of Science in Nursing, with a psychiatric mental health nurse practitioner concentration.

The addition of these degree offerings will help develop future professionals in these high-demand careers. Both degrees will be available this fall and are offered through 100% online delivery.

This gift is part of a large fundraising campaign Davenport launched publicly in December. With the goal of raising $35M, ELEVATE, a campaign for Davenport University, will provide critical funds to support students, university programs and scholarships.  The university has already been gifted nearly $25.6M through the support of generous alumni and donors. To learn more about the ELEVATE campaign or to contribute to these programs in support of Davenport students visit davenport.edu/ELEVATE.