Wellness Pods: Quiet Help for Loud Struggles
Actress Taraji P. Henson has expanded her mental health partnerships with Coppin State University. The 54 year old entrepreneur and mental health advocate recently announced her latest iteration of wellness pods. Writer Daniel Johnson, in his 2025 article for Black Enterprise, “Taraji P. Henson Expands Mental Health Mission At Coppin State University”, writes, “Henson and her best friend, Tracie Jade Jenkins announced their intention to launch the latest iteration of SheCare wellness pods later this semester in conjunction with a Baltimore HBCU, Coppin State University.”
SheCare: Support Born from Loss and Action
The Empire alum and Academy Award nominated actress has long been an advocate for mental health. In 2018, Hensen and Jenkins established the Boris L. Henson Foundation, a mental health awareness nonprofit named after the former’s late father. Five years later, Henson partnered with Kate Spade New York to launch SheCare wellness pods specifically for Black women on HBCU campuses. Writer Dominique Fluker, in her 2025 article for Essence,
“Taraji P. Henson’s Mental Health Foundation Partners With Kate Spade To Launch ‘She Care Wellness Pods’ At HBCUs”, writes, “She Care Wellness Pods are a part of BLHF’s broader initiative, ‘Meeting You Where You Are,’ offering hassle-free access to mental health resources in traditional and non-traditional spaces where African Americans convene. The initiative includes He Care and They Care Pods… physical structures installed on campuses that offer a range of services, including free mental health virtual and in-person therapy sessions for women students experiencing significant stress, anxiety, and depression.”
Why It Matters Now
Mental health has become one of the leading conversations in the African American community since the onset of the 2020’s. According to data from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Office of Minority Health, “in 2022, suicide was the third leading cause of death for Black or African Americans ages 10 to 24…the death rate from suicide for Black or African American males was more than four times higher than for Black or African American females in 2021”. Coppin State University is the latest college or university to partner with Henson’s foundation. The first of its kind, the pods are essentially hang out spots where students can seek services in a welcoming and unassuming way.
Henson’s Personal Mission
Henson herself firmly believes this product is needed based on her own observations. In a 2023 interview, Henson says,
“You know when you see the numbers and how we are suffering more than any other demographic, you feel compelled to do, feel like saying something… I have a platform, and this is how I am choosing to use it.”
