A primary stressor of college students is financial insecurity. Research estimates that 36% of college students are food insecure, 36% lack reliable housing, and 9% experienced homelessness in 2018. Sources of financial stress for college students typically include housing, tuition and other academic expenses, credit card debt, familial responsibilities, and employment status. Furthermore, research has also shown that psychological stress correlates with decreased sleep quality. During periods of intense stress, an individual may have more frequent disturbances during sleep, sleep for fewer hours, and adopt later waking times (Galambos et al., 2013). This study investigates the relationship between financial insecurity and sleep quality of students attending a 2-year college in Washington state. More specifically, this study aims to determine the impact of a sleep wellness workshop on the sleep quality of college students. Data collection will occur through an online Qualtrics survey before and after the sleep wellness workshop. The Qualtrics survey includes modified Sleep Quality Scale questions, the Beck Anxiety Inventory (BAI), and the Perceived Stress Scale (PSS). It is hypothesized that experiencing financial insecurity will positively correlate to poorer sleep quality. It is predicted that this relationship is mediated by stress and that the sleep wellness workshop will improve sleep quality in college students. Understanding factors that contribute to poor sleep quality is vital as sleep plays a key role in maintaining proper cognitive functioning. The results of this study are intended to improve current resources, as well as implement new resources, concerning sleep quality and stress of college students.

Increasing mental illness among college students continues to be a critical issue. College life is often a time of great transition, contributing to and potentially exacerbating students' rising stress, anxiety, and other mental struggles. Poor sleep habits may develop during college, and poor sleep quality can amplify stress. To explore how institutions might help students struggling with stress, we conducted a small pilot study examining whether a sleep-focused workshop would reduce stress levels in students at a Pacific Northwest community college. For this pilot study, I helped generate an online pre- and post-workshop survey of demographic questions, the UCLA Loneliness Scale, and the Perceived Stress Scale (PSS). Our results indicated that participants' workshop attendance reduced their stress levels. Before the sleep workshop, participants scored an average of 20.27 (SD=7.41, range=2 to 30) on the PSS, while two weeks after the workshop, the average PSS score had reduced to 16.58 (SD=7.65, range=4 to 27). These results suggest benefits of a sleep-focused wellness workshop for college students. In our present study, we replicated the pilot study. I examined student stress in correlation to sleep quality and assessed these factors through an online survey of demographic questions, sleep quality questions, the Beck Anxiety Inventory, and the PSS. We distributed this survey to participants before and after a sleep workshop run by the Bellevue College psychology department. I hypothesized that poor sleep quality correlates to higher student stress levels. I also hypothesized that the intervention of a sleep workshop would reduce stress levels. I hope that our results provide insight into the utility of wellness workshops for students and whether they are an avenue to help students manage stress and improve their sleep quality, which could improve student mental health by lowering stress and anxiety and improving quality of life and education overall.