As an educator in the classroom and a former principal on the South Side of Chicago, I’ve seen firsthand the challenges that students and staff alike face. American Education Week provides a crucial opportunity to shed light on an issue that continues to be ignored: the need to support the mental health of both students…
As we approach another Veterans Day, I find myself reflecting on the commitment we owe to our military personnel and veterans. Working as the policy manager at Active Minds, the importance of mental health advocacy is prominent, especially for those who’ve served our nation. Two transformative policies that have the power to greatly support veterans’…
College is not easy. This fall, I began my sophomore year at Union College, and it is definitely much more challenging than the previous year, especially since I have all upper-level classes this term, two of them being biology classes and one other intensive political science class. Though students often jokingly debate which is more…
Content Warning: This piece contains mentions of suicide. Getting involved in mental health advocacy in our youth is not easy, but with the emergence of bills like the Student ID Bill (a proposal for schools to print mental health hotline numbers, such as 988, on the back of student ID cards), opportunities for upcoming generations…
Voting forms the bedrock of our democracy, carrying substantial weight in shaping the policies and societal issues that will be addressed during campaigns and highlighted in the laws put into action in your state. In the 2023 election cycle, voters wield influence over a wide range of positions, including gubernatorial candidates (governors), state legislatures, state…
Picture this: It’s my first semester at Central New Mexico Community College (CNMCC), and I’m knee-deep in textbooks, navigating the maze of college life. Like many of us, I was eager to learn and grow but realized that the pressures of academia can sometimes take a toll on our mental health. Stress, self-doubt, and the…
Three years ago, I came out as a lesbian. Spoiler alert — that is no longer the label I identify with. And that’s okay. But for a long time, I didn’t think it was okay. And that fear of “misidentifying,” of coming out and then changing my mind, of just being what I perceived as…
For over a decade, the Active Minds Send Silence Packing® (SSP) display has traveled the country to end the silence surrounding mental illness and suicide. Send Silence Packing® encourages attendees to seek support for themselves, friends, or loved ones, with trained professionals available on-site and thousands of mental health resources distributed to community members at…
I was fourteen years old when I was introduced to the space of mental health advocacy. At this time, I began training to become a hotline listener at Teen Line, a peer crisis line in Los Angeles. I was fascinated by this organization that not only served youth but actively centered their engagement. After all,…
Welcome our fall 2023 interns, some of our community’s biggest champions for mental health! Each semester, the class of interns at Active Minds plays an integral role in everything from program development, marketing and communications, fundraising and development, and so much more. We couldn’t do our work without our interns, and our team at Active…
Active Minds is the largest nonprofit in the United States mobilizing youth and young adults to transform mental health norms across society.