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The City of College Park
Case Study
Overview
For years, College Park, Maryland had a need hiding in plain sight. The city’s Youth, Family & Senior Services programs were strong and well-established, but adults 18–62, including college students, working parents, and veterans, had no clear pathway to mental health support.
"The council tasked us with finding a way to deliver mental health services to our residents that we don't traditionally serve," explains City Manager Kenneth Young. "Our services, there's a gap between 18 and 62."
The pandemic made that gap impossible to ignore. Regional waitlists stretched for months. Universities struggled to meet demand. First responders were left transporting people in crisis to ERs or jails—knowing those weren’t the right answers.
College Park needed a different solution: not another city-run program to build and staff, but a bridge, a way to connect residents to the right care, quickly, in any language, at any time.
In 2024, the city found that bridge in Care Solace.
Solutions
College Park partnered with Care Solace to create a single pathway to mental health and social services—available to all 34,740 residents, city employees, people who work in College Park, UMD students, and first responders.
"We wanted to look for a way to be able to connect people with mental health services and social services without us having to go out and invest a lot of money in infrastructure," Young says. "And we found Care Solace."
Here's how it works:
24/7/365 Live Navigation
Residents can call or use the Care Match platform any time, day or night. A live Care Companion conducts a needs assessment, searches the network for appropriate providers, and coordinates the full journey — from first contact to booked appointment.
Citywide Access for Everyone
The service is available to all residents, city employees, first responders, and anyone working in community-facing departments. Police officers can make referrals directly from the field. City staff can connect residents during a crisis without having to figure out the system themselves.
Multilingual, Culturally Responsive Matching
With support in over 200 languages, Care Solace meets College Park's diverse community where they are — matching residents not just by insurance and availability, but by language, cultural background, and specific care needs.
Actionable Data for Leaders
Regular reporting gives city officials clear visibility into the community's top needs, insurance mix, time-to-care, and levels of acuity — insights that help them target programs, allocate resources, and measure impact.
"Care Solace is a compass and a flashlight. It helps residents navigate the mental health system and get the care they need."
Maria Mackie
Councilmember
Real Impact: When Seconds Matter
Late one night, Mayor Fazlul Kabir learned of a tragic incident. “The first thing that came to my mind was Care Solace,” he recalls. “I called the number—someone picked up at 10 p.m. The Care Companion stayed on the line, was patient and kind, and walked us through next steps. I was grateful I could do something meaningful.”
Hear the full story from Mayor Fazlul Kabir as he describes the vital role Care Solace has played in brining robust mental health support to the city's residents.
This wasn't an isolated case. Since launch, College Park has seen 1,745 service requests:
38%
of referrals struggled with depression and suicidal ideation, with 30.8% requiring higher-acuity pathways like inpatient or detox.
61%
of those assisted had public, military, or no insurance, aiding even the most vulnerable populations.
1.98
days is the average time it took to match residents to a provider. Without Care Solace, the average time is 6 weeks.
63%
of cases came from the BIPOC community. Care Solace provides access to care for diverse communities.
The population being served reflects exactly who the city set out to reach: 57% adults (26–59) and 38% young adults (18–25). “In over 35 years in local government, I’ve never seen us capture the delivery of a service better than we have with Care Solace.”
Looking Ahead: A Model for Other Communities
For College Park, the partnership represents more than filling a service gap—it's about creating a community where joy, connection, and freedom are possible.
By unifying navigation across departments and meeting residents where they are, the city is translating intent into access: connecting people to the right care in days, not months; giving first responders options beyond ER or jail; and equipping leaders with the visibility to invest where needs are greatest.
"Care Solace is an asset to our community," Kiaisha Barber, Director of youth, family, and senior services says. "It undergirds youth, family, and senior services, our city staff, and our residents. It's a program for the people."
For other municipalities struggling with similar challenges, College Park's story offers a clear message: you don’t have to build everything yourself. Sometimes the most transformative infrastructure isn’t brick and mortar, it’s a bridge to care that’s there whenever someone needs it most.
Find out how we can partner to make accessing mental health care easier than ever for your residents.
