The University of Mississippi is stepping into the collegiate betting debate. Its new collegiate gambling center will focus on how students engage with gambling and how universities respond. The initiative comes as betting activity continues to expand across US campuses.

• The University of Mississippi has established what it says is the first US centre dedicated to collegiate gambling. The project was approved by the state’s higher education trustees and sits within student wellbeing programmes. It is designed to research betting behaviour and support policy development around collegiate gambling.
• Initial research by the university showed that 39% of Mississippi college students gambled in the past year. Among those betting on sports, 6% met criteria for problem gambling under clinical guidelines. These findings are expected to guide the work of the collegiate gambling center and shape future campus measures.
• The centre will also focus on prevention and support services. Eight campus counselors have already completed specialist training to identify and address gambling-related harm. “There was a need for a center focused specifically on collegiate gambling,” said Daniel Durkin, Associate Professor of Social Work at the University of Mississippi, highlighting the gap the initiative aims to address.

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