In this episode of GridgeFridge, we explore the burgeoning housing crisis in Madison and the ways in which it intersects with health and well-being for students and community members alike.

Through conversations with UW students and staff, affordable housing advocates, mental health professionals, and community leaders, we examine how rising rents, limited availability, and unstable living conditions are reshaping life on and off the UW–Madison campus.

From students navigating lease pressure and luxury apartment “affordable housing” units, to longtime Madison residents witnessing the impacts of housing insecurity, we explore how housing instability impacts far more than where someone rests their head at night. It affects physical and mental health, academic and professional success, and someone's sense of stability and belonging.

This episode features perspectives from UW–Madison student Angel Delgado, University Health Services Director of Mental Health Services Dr. Ellen Marks, Porchlight Executive Director Karla Thennes, realtor and business owner Tiffany Malone, former Madison alderperson and current Odyssey Project Success Coach Brian Benford, career journalist and professor Sue Robinson, and real estate faculty member Paul Aylesworth.

And together, they offer their thoughts and reflections on the pressures, tradeoffs, and systemic challenges that continue to shape who is able to live, stay, and thrive in Madison.

As the city continues to grow, the question becomes not just how to build more housing, but how to create housing that is truly affordable, accessible, and sustainable for the people who call Madison home.

In our final episode of the semester, we are joined by two Morgridge Center interns, Preet Talwar and Estrella Garza.

These two soon-to-be graduates have made a substantial impact on the Morgridge and Madison community, working to fulfill the center’s mission every day.

Preet is studying psychology and consumer behavior & marketplace studies with certificates in criminal justice and entrepreneurship, and Estrella is studying elementary education and educational policy studies with minors in early childhood education and English as a second language.

In this episode of GridgeFridge, we sit down with Dr. Ellen Marks, director of Mental Health Services at University Health Services (UHS) at the University of Wisconsin–Madison.

Ellen first came to UW–Madison as part of a one-year internship for her doctoral training. Ten years later, she’s still here, sustained by her family, the campus community and the ability to build a life here.

Now, she is an emerging mental health leader, managing clinical care, crisis response and program development–all while continuing to counsel students.

In her time at UHS, Ellen has witnessed the evolving mental health landscape for college students, one shaped by academic pressure, isolation, identity development and broader societal pressures.