Three students are bringing a program to campus that will help rub the stress away.

Juniors Maurilio Castorena, James Glunt and Kristen Kenny are working to bring Stressbusters to TCU. Created in 1996 by Jordan Friedman at Columbia University, the program trains students and faculty to give massages and to help students who need to alleviate stress and anxiety.

Stressbusters has spread to other colleges and universities across the nation, including Harvard University, the University of Missouri and now, TCU.

“There is a stigma on college campuses regarding stress and anxiety: it makes you weak, or you should be able to deal with that by yourself,” Casterona, an accounting major, said. “Part of our goal is to debunk that myth and encourage kids to go to the counseling center.”

Castorena, Glunt and Kenny are working on this project as part of the Next Generation Leadership Program in connection with the Neeley School of Business. They chose to tackle the issue of stress because they believe it has a big presence on campus.

“I think every student deals with stress in some capacity,” Castorena said. “Whether you are a student who has a little stress, or whether you are an individual who has anxiety, we all have levels of stress and different ways to address it.”

“As long as students have tests, there’s stress,” said Kenny, an accounting major.

The TCU Stressbusters program will come to campus at the beginning of next semester, said Glunt, a supply and value chain management major.

In addition to free five minute back massages which can be given anywhere on campus, the program will also educate students about the concepts of stress and how to deal with its symptoms.

Though the program will be run by student volunteers, Glunt, Kenny and Castorena are not sure if it will become an official student organization. Glunt said any students are able to join and be trained to give the massages.

“No matter if it’s ever an official student organization with an adviser and a president or not, it will always be run by students,” Glunt said. “We will always need the students to be successful.”

The group will work with the Counseling Center to help students deal with stress and anxiety. Kenny said one of the goals of the project is to make sure students are aware of the resources available at the counseling center.

“I think what we’re really hoping is that students understand that this isn’t something you can just brush under the table and not worry about,” Kenny said. “Your mental health is just as important as your physical health. We hope we can make an impact with students by helping them understand that it’s okay to talk about it.”