The USC Speak Your MIND ice bucket challenge was created by the University of South Carolina to address the issue of mental health awareness. In addition to this challenge, the university also created the Mental Illness Needs Discussion (MIND) club which is a community committed to destigmatizing mental health discussions and creating support.  This ice bucket trend began around March 31st and involves participants pouring ice water over themselves and nominating others to keep the trend going. Since the reintroduction of this challenge, it has been going viral the last couple weeks on social media platforms.   

 The challenge became something many people participated in, including celebrities like James Charles and Peyton Manning who want to support mental health importance. “I think this trend is for a good cause bringing people together to spread awareness and it also encourages them to prioritize their mental health,” said junior Ariel Burch. 

 One of the main goals of the challenge is to serve as a fundraiser to support Active Minds. Active Minds is an organization for young adults to be able to advocate for suicide prevention and mental health. Mental health is a serious topic and is just as important as physical health. “It is crucial to take care of your mental health because it helps you manage the challenges and stress you might face and you need to be able to access resources that can help you,” said junior Malia Kirschman.  

 Active Minds wants to be able to have a community where everyone feels safe opening up about their own mental health. Along with it, the Speak Your MIND Challenge continues to inspire individuals to engage in meaningful conversations about mental health.  

The campaign has raised over 190,000 dollars and is expected to raise more as the trend continues. “I wasn’t sure what the trend was at first but now that I have participated and learned more about it, I think it is a great way to raise money,” said sophomore, Kylie Coles. With the popularity of this fundraiser, many more are likely to appear in the future after recognizing the benefits they bring and how they can bring attention to important topics such as mental health.