SGA partners with Bright for virtual well-being program

By Aaliyah Patel

Thanks to the Student Government Association (SGA) Rider students, faculty and staff can enjoy hundreds of free, live virtual well-being classes that support mental and physical health weekly through the development of the app Bright.

The app offers classes through the comprehensive program, the Bright Pass. Within the program, users can book classes such as mindfulness, nutrition, yoga and even sign up for keynote speaker sessions, all ranging from 15 minutes to an hour. Upon booking, users can add their classes and sessions to their calendar and set reminder notifications.

SGA partnered with the company Bright to support the Rider community whether they are on campus or at home.

Elizabeth O’Hara, a junior computer science major and SGA vice president for university affairs, shared the importance of creating a platform that enables student well-being.

“The Health and Safety Committee in SGA has made it a goal of theirs this year to focus on the mental health and well-being of the entire Rider community. We wanted everyone, no matter if they were studying or working on-campus or remotely, to be supported in feeling their best. We hope that by offering this app for free to students, faculty and staff, that those interested will prioritize their mental and physical health and partake in self-care practices,” O’Hara said.

The Bright pass program is interactive, allowing users to invite other members of the program to join their sessions.

“The Bright Pass is a virtual well-being solution that helps students reduce stress, improve their physical and mental well-being, and feel more engaged and connected to each other while studying remotely. It provides students with access to a full daily schedule of live, online well-being classes each month (yoga, nutrition, and mindfulness), as well as a lineup of keynotes on a variety of well-being topics. This helps students focus on their physical and mental health, especially when on-campus resources may not be as accessible for all students,” O’Hara said.

With the stress of the COVID-19 pandemic, the development of the app intends to make all users feel their best.

Dylan Erdelyi, a senior musical theater major and president of SGA, explained the process of finding ways to virtually keep students engaged and connected.

“We have been searching for an app that would address some of the issues that we have been seeing around mental well-being in our community. I am so excited that we decided to start a partnership with Bright. This app offers so much to all of us at Rider. I personally have been taking advantage of some of the sessions to give myself a breath or rejuvenation during long days. I encourage everyone to give it a try,” Erdelyi shared.

The Bright app is compatible with any device and can be downloaded on the app store.