On the ball about mental health

For Chris Clarke ’27, mental health and basketball are deeply intertwined.

“Basketball takes me away from anything and everything that’s going on outside,” says Clarke, a point guard on the Clark men’s basketball team. “Hearing the swish of the net or the basketball bouncing genuinely brings me joy and excitement.”

Clarke wants to share that sense of joy, and he’s doing so with the support of a fellowship from The Team, a nonprofit that empowers student-athletes to get involved in voting and civic engagement. The Team provides its fellows a $1,000 stipend to be used toward the completion of a personal project and a $3,000 personal stipend.

For his project, Clarke has co-founded a group with teammate Quentin Pridgen ’27 called Mindful 224, a combination of both his and Pridgin’s jersey numbers (2 and 24, respectively). The group works to destigmatize authentic conversations about mental health and wellness, as well as bridge the divide between students and student-athletes. Their slogan? Mindfulness today, tomorrow, forever.

“We’re all here at Clark, we’re all going through the same things in terms of being away from home or being stressed with classes,” he says. “Tackling problems together has been great for the group as a whole.”

Clarke says he was very excited to receive the fellowship because he feels empowered to begin making an impact in his community.

“Even since I was young, I’ve always had a knack for doing the best I can for the person next to me,” Clarke says. “I really value being a resource for anybody.”

Mindful 224’s first meeting was at local café WooJuice, where attendees participated in community-building exercises over smoothies. Successive meetings have generally had a good turnout, bringing together 10 to 15 Clarkies to collaborate on mindfulness activities and outings.

“I want to reach the students who may not feel like it will benefit them to be a part of this,” Clarke says. “I feel like I’m already making a decent impact by just helping people realize that they’re not alone in anything that they’re going through at Clark.”

Clarke has also interacted with other athletes awarded fellowships from The Team, which he says has given him a perspective of different sports communities around the country. He’s built what he describes as “a family of engaged athletes,” he recently did an Instagram takeover for The Team detailing a day in his life as a Clark student-athlete.

“I feel like I’m making a steady impact, and I want to continue to grow in my advocacy, basketball career, and career in data science.”

Clarke will join The Team fellows at an upcoming conference in Washington, D.C., to share stories and projects. He looks forward to being able to document his impact and meet his peers, who care about sports and community as much as he does.

Last year, Isaiah Taylor ’25 became the first Clark basketball player to earn a fellowship from The Team. He used the fellowship to host basketball clinics and provide lunch for Main South youth in summer 2024. He inspired Clarke to apply.

Clarke has been playing basketball since the third grade, when he joined a YMCA youth league in his hometown of Brockton, Massachusetts, and has been hooked ever since.

Off the court, Clarke the data science major is particularly excited to learn coding and study technology as it evolves so that he’s well-prepared for life after Clark.

Clarke hopes to continue playing basketball and advocating for the mental health of athletes and those in his community.

“I feel like I’m making a steady impact, and I want to continue to grow in my advocacy, basketball career, and career in data science,” Clarke says. “I want to reach people, and I want to find a way to balance my sport and my work.”