BOSTON, MASS. (October 8, 2026) – In the spring of 2024, Bella Nadeau (North Smithfield, R.I) walked across the graduation stage, wrapping up her career with UMass Boston and UMass Boston Athletics.
Or so she thought. On Monday, October 5, 2026, Nadeau returned to her alma mater with an important message for student-athletes, one derived from the organization where she now works as the Director of University Alumni and Athlete Programs, the Quell Foundation.  

The Quell Foundation is a nonprofit organization aimed at promoting open, judgment-free dialogue to normalize the conversation around mental health. The Foundation awards scholarships for a brighter future in the mental health field, increases access to services for better care and treatment, and encourages the sharing of personal stories to inspire hope. 

When Bella Nadeau began her career as a student-athlete, the national conversation around athlete mental health was only starting to take shape.

Today, she says, engagement with the topic grows every year, but awareness alone isn't enough. In the NCAA's Student-Athlete Health and Wellness Study, only about half of student-athletes (51% of men, 49% of women) said they felt comfortable seeking support from a mental health provider on campus.  

"Beyond awareness campaigns, I think that stories are what can help athletes potentially feel less isolated and alone," Nadeau said.  

That's what made Monday night matter.  

In a room of athletes from different sports and different stages of their careers, all donning the Beacons' logo, the documentary film "Human First: Beyond the Athlete" offered a chance for Beacons to see their peers share experiences openly and to feel heard, even for those not ready to seek professional help. 

The film featured 11 subjects, from the high school level to the pros, including names like former NFL athlete Rob, a former NCAA Division I women's soccer player named Tess, a former professional baseball player Dario, and a former NCAA Division I cross-country runner named Cali. Each shared their experiences with athletic identity, injuries, the struggles that came with them, and life after sports. 

Nadeau was among those featured in the film, speaking openly and without hesitation. For the current Beacons in the audience, hearing a familiar voice among so many others made those experiences feel closer to home. 

Being an alumna of UMass Boston softball, Nadeau was inspired at the thought of returning to the Harbor Campus, and being so close to the project, she wanted to prioritize the Beacons as one of the first audiences to view the documentary. She said, "Being a Beacon truly changed the trajectory of my life; without the support of my coaches and many others on the athletics staff, I would be in a much different place on my healing journey. Because of that, I couldn't think of a better place to start than by coming home."  

For women's lacrosse senior midfielder Luana Batista Soares (Raleigh, N.C.), that was the takeaway. "Hearing Bella's story out loud along with others in the movie made me realize how many people go through silent mental health struggles, and the variety of factors that can play into it," she wrote after the event. 

Ian Visnick (Beverly, Mass.), a former Little East Conference Men's Soccer Defensive Player of the Year, said the night also pushed him to look inward. "It was cool and humbling to see how bravely and honestly the people in the film and in the panel spoke about their personal struggles," Visnick said. "It helped me to be more direct in my own personal reflections and communication." 

The audience consisted of a wide variety of student-athletes from each of the Beacons' 20 programs, totaling around 70 young men and women. Nadeau was joined by current Beacons softball head coach Natalia Ardagna and men's lacrosse senior defenseman Jaden Cronin (East Bridgewater, Mass.) for a discussion panel following the viewing, moderated by Assistant Director of Athletics for Compliance and Engagement Programs, Matthew Taiman, speaking directly to the audience about their respective journeys and hurdles with mental wellness.

When Cronin was asked what happens when sports success and personal identity become the same, he said lacrosse had been central to his daily life. 

"On the field during games when things don't go as planned, it kind of controlled my entire mood," he said. "It kind of became part of my identity." 

Nadeau knew the feeling.  

"I was all softball all the time, and then I never really gave myself time to get to know myself, really at all, outside softball," she said. 

Later in the discussion, Nadeau shared that after a season-ending injury as a junior, she suffered a career-ending injury as a senior. Stepping away from her team brought a weight of its own. 

"I know that my teammates didn't judge me or think differently of me, but I think that was honestly the hardest part, which was just the internalizing guilt and shame of having to walk away, take care of myself, and put myself first," Nadeau said. 

One common experience Cronin shared with the audience was his fulfillment in assisting others with their mental health journeys, even if it came at his own expense. 

"I find joy in helping other people with what's going on with them, but I did that at my own expense, and I held in my own thoughts and feelings," Cronin said.  

"You can reach a whole other level when you break your walls down and talk about what you're going through. There might be someone who has never opened up to anyone in their life, but they see that you're doing it with them, so they might open up and talk to you." 

As student-athletes can deal with mental health struggles, this is where the ever-important role of a college coach can come into play in ways that some might not necessarily expect. Coaches strive to help their athletes and put them in a position to succeed in every aspect of their lives both on and off the field. For Nadeau, that support often had little to do with softball. 

"It was never just, 'Okay, Bella, how's softball going?' It was, 'How's your class? How's your thesis?...How are all the other things that you have going on?'" Nadeau said of Ardagna. 

Coach Ardagna provided insight from her lens and her experience through coaching at UMass Boston, underlying the importance of developing a relationship with your coach so that "they can support you in a way that you may need further on down the road - that may not necessarily show up right away," she said.  

Continuing, she said, "Our job as a coach is to observe people and to try to make you a better athlete...The goal is ... when you leave here. That you're happy and healthy, and that you can make it in the world with some more tools than you had before you came in." 

"Hearing Coach Ardagna speak about how a college coach's goal is to make athletes better human beings made me thankful for my experiences and relationships as a student-athlete at UMass Boston. I couldn't help but think about how my coaches and teammates contributed to make me 100 times the person, player and teammate I was when I first got here," Visnick said. 

Ardagna, a head coach for 20 years, said preparing athletes for what comes after sport is something she wants to do better. "I think I need to put a little bit more effort into making sure that I am creating these conversations and I am creating a supportive environment," she said. 

She also made a point of crediting her former player. "I do want to make sure that I bring a little bit of light to how brave Bella is," she said. She called it "impactful" for Nadeau to "come back to her alma mater and look people right in the face, sitting right where she was...and to be able to share that in the hopes that it opens the door for mental health." 

Nadeau's advice to the room was to start small. 

"You don't have to sit in front of a whole panel of people and talk about everything that you've experienced in your life, like I'm doing right now, but just one person," she said. "Just start with one person and see what happens." 

Bella noted to the audience at the beginning of the event that this viewing at UMass Boston was one of the first of its kind on any campus in the nation. "It's really important to me that I was able to have this experience with you all for the first time," Nadeau said. "And so just know that your best day is still ahead of you, and if you're struggling, that you can make that first step. And if you need someone to hold your hand while you make that first step, let them." 

Student-athletes and others seeking support can find resources through UMass Boston's Health and Wellness page, including scheduling an appointment with the Counseling Center and additional wellness programs. The 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline is available 24/7 by call or text at 988. 

--FIND A WAY--