Newly dedicated wellness center has served over 7,000 students on Davenport’s campus

GRAND RAPIDS, MI — Since its opening in 2023, Davenport University’s wellness center has provided over 7,000 students with free healthcare and counseling services.
Over the last two years, the center has also helped improve campus culture and boost graduation rates, according to university leaders who gathered Wednesday to celebrate the dedication of the facility.
The newly-named Keith and Kathryn Klingenberg Wellness Center, located on the southeast Grand Rapids campus at 6191 Kraft Ave. SE, offers both virtual and in-person counseling services. The center also has a nurse on site to help treat minor medical concerns or illnesses.
All enrolled students are eligible to use the center’s services free of charge, and it is open Monday through Thursday, 8 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. and Friday, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.
More information can be found online, and counseling appointments for 45-minute sessions can be made here.
Davenport is a private, nonprofit university with six locations across Michigan. It serves around 5,000 students in Grand Rapids, Kalamazoo, Lansing, Midland, Traverse City, Warren and online.
While the center’s services are open to students across the state, the wellness center’s lead counselor Darrin Oliver said a large majority of appointments – around 92% – are in person on the Grand Rapids campus.
Those utilizing virtual appointments are typically commuters, or students located on other campuses across the state. Other students on the Grand Rapids campus may prefer a virtual appointment because of social anxiety or other factors that make an in-person appointment strenuous, he said.
But the steady stream of appointments, regardless of how students show up, is indicative of how a younger generation of students is moving away from mental health stigma, he said.
“They’re willing to ask for help,” Oliver said.
According to a 2024 article by Davenport, the years following the COVID-19 pandemic also saw a 105% increase in mental health services utilized by students.
On Wednesday, Davenport President Richard Pappas referenced the latest Healthy Minds study, an annual survey of over 84,000 students, which found 37% of U.S. college students reported moderate to severe depression symptoms.
That percentage dropped from 44% in 2022, but Pappas said it still illustrates how common mental health challenges are.
“A strong person … says, ‘I need some help,’” he said.
Davenport University opened its wellness center in 2023 after a $1 million gift from Grand Rapids’ Keith and Kathy Klingenberg, the former of whom is a Davenport alumnus, business owner and member of the university’s Board of Trustees.
Over the last five years, the Klingenberg family donated over $2 million to support the project, Pappas said.
Oliver said he believes the help students are receiving now has already made a difference.
Graduation rates have increased because of counseling on everything from homesickness to depression, anxiety and obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD), he said.
According to the U.S. Department of Education’s College Scorecard, Davenport has a graduation rate of 44% within eight years. The university’s four-year graduation rate is 36%, according to the National Center for Education Statistics’ Integrated Postsecondary Education Data System.
Davenport’s goal, according to a 2025 vision plan, is to achieve a graduation rate of 55%.
Mary Free Bed Rehabilitation President and CEO Kent Riddle, also a university trustee, said many students who arrive on college campuses do so with pre-existing mental health challenges or face new pressures related to academics, finances, transitions and social adjustment.
“On-campus wellness services can catch needs early, provide timely support and help prevent crises that might otherwise lead to academic withdrawal or even worse,” he said.
In addition to the wellness center, Davenport has also used the funds to create two mental health degree programs — a master’s in mental health counseling and master’s in psychiatric mental health nurse practitioner concentration. The programs now have 150 students enrolled.
“Keith and Kathryn’s extraordinary generosity is transforming the way Davenport cares for its students and the broader community,” Pappas said. “Because of their commitment, our students now have greater access to essential wellness support, and our graduates of our mental health programs will be prepared to fill critical roles in a field facing unprecedented demand.”