Student Minds’ CEO Rosie Tressler recognised with OBE in the 2019 Honours List

We are delighted to share that Student Minds’ CEO, Rosie Tressler, has been awarded with an OBE in Her Majesty The Queen’s Birthday 2019 Honours List, in recognition of her services to mental health in Higher Education. 

Rosie has been working on the issue of student mental health for several years, including various roles at Student Minds supporting volunteering, campaigning and training development before becoming the charity's Chief Executive Officer in 2015. Rosie is involved with multiple programmes to transform the health of student and university communities, and currently oversees the development of the University Mental Health Charter, a national quality improvement and reward scheme which is being co-produced with students and the university community. 

Following the news of this recognition, Rosie would like to share her gratitude to all involved with Student Minds:

“As a passionate mental health campaigner, I am overwhelmed and incredibly grateful to have received this honour which is a real testament to the movement building to create healthy university communities. Social change is created by many people working collaboratively and creatively together, and I am lucky to work with the very best people, who all deserve recognition.

Thank you to our dedicated and hardworking staff team, our hundreds of inspirational volunteers and university staff partners, our thoughtful trustees, clinical and student advisors, our generous funders, and our committed partner organisations in the UK and internationally. 

Thank you to the thousands of students, academics, mental health practitioners and university professionals - that have shared their stories with us, campaigned for change and supported research and development projects to help the next generation. 
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On a personal level I’d also like to thank my family, friends and partner for supporting me and looking out for my mental health and wellbeing.

And finally, thank you to our Chair and Founder, Dr. Nicola Byrom, for sharing your story so courageously a decade ago and for showing you can make transformational change at any age, so that I and many others could do the same. 

I’m proud of what all of us are achieving together and will keep doing my best to deliver on the honour of receiving an OBE, so that every student and staff member that requires support for mental illness receives timely, effective treatment and so that the whole community can thrive. Universities and charities are special places that change society for the better, and now more than ever we need to work together to create an inclusive, safe and supportive world."