Call for Chapters: Wellness, Healing, and Holistic Development in Higher Education

2026-04-08
Call for Chapters Wellness, Healing, and Holistic Development in Higher Education

This volume centers wellness, healing, and holistic development as critical components of thriving higher education environments. It seeks to explore how institutions can move beyond reactive approaches to mental health toward proactive, culturally responsive, and community-based models of care.

The book invites contributions that address the interconnected dimensions of well-being, including mental health, trauma, resilience, and institutional culture, with attention to the experiences of Black students, faculty, and staff.

Suggested Topics Include (but are not limited to):
  • Mental health trends and support systems in higher education
  • Trauma-informed practices and healing-centered engagement
  • Racial trauma and intergenerational experiences in academia
  • Faculty and staff well-being, burnout, and retention
  • Student basic needs, including food and housing insecurity
  • Peer support, mentoring, and community-based wellness models
  • Holistic student development and advising frameworks
  • Wellness-centered leadership and institutional culture
  • Spirituality, identity, and well-being in higher education
  • Designing inclusive and accessible wellness programs
Submission Guidelines
  • Chapter length: 2,000–4,000 words
  • Abstract: 100–120 words
  • Empirical, conceptual, or practice-based contributions welcome
  • Submit your abstract by July 1
Proposed Table of Contents

Section I: Mental Health and Institutional Contexts

  • Integrating Wellness into Higher Education Practice
  • Student Mental Health and Support Systems
  • Community-Based and Peer Support Models

Section II: Trauma, Healing, and Resilience

  • Addressing Racial Trauma in Academic Spaces
  • Intergenerational Experiences and Leadership
  • From Surviving to Thriving in Higher Education

Section III: Holistic Development and Sustainability

  • Addressing Basic Needs and Student Well-Being
  • Designing Inclusive Wellness Programs
  • Supporting Faculty and Staff Well-Being