Estevan Garcia to Lead Hospital in Dartmouth Health System

After achieving a series of milestones for mental health and well-being initiatives at Dartmouth, Chief Health and Wellness Officer Estevan Garcia will leave Hanover this winter for a new role with Dartmouth Health.

Garcia has been appointed the next president and chief executive officer of Southwestern Vermont Medical Center in Bennington, Vt., health system leaders announced Oct. 28. His last day at Dartmouth will be Jan. 18.

“I am incredibly proud of all we have accomplished for our students and our community,” says Garcia, who inaugurated the chief officer role in March 2024 as part of President Sian Leah Beilock’s commitment to improve student mental health and well-being.

“Estevan has been a catalyst for positive change in the Dartmouth community and a compassionate, talented leader; we wish him well,” says President Beilock. “We have made great strides in establishing a new baseline for the quality of support our students and community can expect, making Dartmouth a leader in addressing youth mental health.”

First among those continuing initiatives is Commitment to Care, the strategic plan supporting student mental health and well-being, which marked two years of progress with a gathering on campus last week. More than 60 of the 73 steps detailed in that plan are in progress or completed, and reviews of data and student surveys across Dartmouth’s schools reveal the following positive trends:

• Student survey respondents at risk for moderate to severe depression decreased from 33% in 2021 to 24% in 2024.
• Student survey respondents at risk for moderate to severe anxiety decreased from 27% in 2021 to 23% in 2024.
• Student survey respondents agreeing that Dartmouth prioritizes student mental health increased from 47% in 2021 to 73% in 2024.
• 93% of undergraduate survey respondents agree they know where to get professional help for their mental or emotional health, up 10 percentage points since 2021.

Mark Reed, director of the Student Health Service at Dick’s House and an assistant professor of psychiatry at the Geisel School of Medicine, has been named interim medical director for health and wellness, effective Jan. 19. Reed earned his medical degree from the University of Arizona.

In his expanded role, Reed will oversee the Student Wellness Center, Time Away Office, employee wellness, and health- and wellness-focused student groups, among other duties. 

Reed will report to Jennifer Rosales, senior vice president for community and campus life and chief student affairs officer. Rosales will assume responsibility for the Kirsten and Eugene F. “Buddy” Teevens ’79 Center for Peak Performance—a joint initiative between Health and Wellness and Dartmouth Athletics.

“Across all these areas, I look forward to working more closely with these talented colleagues who I know are committed to weaving health and well-being into the fabric of this community,” says Rosales. “I look forward to continuing—and accelerating where possible—the initiatives started by President Beilock and Estevan.”