Into the Fold: Issues in Mental Health

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By some accounts, young people's relationship to technology is unfolding crisis. It is now commonplace for adults to lament the “screen time” of young people and worry about its effect on their social lives and mental health. In 2023, the American Psychological Association issued a health advisory focusing on adolescent social media use, and the U.S. Surgeon General has said that social media can have “a profound risk of harm to the mental health and well-being of children and adolescents. There is evidence that social media may contribute to issues like depression, anxiety, toxic social comparison, sleep problems, body image issues, and disordered eating.”

But is that the whole story? And if there is real cause for for alarm, what should be done? Dr. Carrie James and Dr. Emily Weinstein are co-founders of the Center for Digital Thriving at Harvard University. In their book Behind Their Screens, Emily and Carrie draw on a survey of more than 3,500 teens with the objective of adding to our understanding of teens’ online lives. In this episode we explore how young people navigate our increasingly networked world and how we balance safety, empathy, and technology in response.

Related links:

From the Archives: Roy Wilkins on the Mental Bondage of Race
From the Archives: Dr. Kenneth Clark on Racism and Child Well-Being
From the Archive: Efua Sutherland on Theatre, Literature and Self-rediscovery

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For this first podcast of the new year we are taking a look back at the National Day of Racial Healing. The National Day of Racial Healing is a nationwide observance that also coincides with Martin Luther King Day. For the second year in a row, the Hogg Foundation joined the celebration by holding an event in Austin, this time in partnership with Austin Justice Coalition, a local nonprofit organization dedicated to improving quality of life for people who are Black, Brown, and poor in the Austin community. It was on Sunday, January 14, the day right before MLK Day, that our host, Ike Evans, joined about 80 other people braved the cold for a day of facilitated dialogue, fellowship, music, a dab of spoken word poetry, and food. We visit with the two facilitators from the day, Dr. Angela Ward and Dr. Mary Rice-Booth, who are both educators who write, speak, facilitate, and think deeply on matters of equity.

Related links:

Leading Within Systems of Inequity in Education: A Liberation Guide for Leaders of Color
Brave Spaces for All
Creating Hope for Healing after Trauma
Episode 149: Juneteenth and Mental Emancipation
Hogg Foundation Declaration of Racism as a Mental Health Crisis
Racial Trauma and Resilience in African American Adults

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it was back in 2017 that we had on Dr. Art Markman, co-host of the KUT show Two Guys on Your Head, to talk about political climate as a chronic stressor. And so, six years after the fact, we thought that it would make sense to close that circle by inviting on Dr. Markman's partner from Two Guys on Your Head, Dr. Bob Duke. We recently had him come to the studio for a discussion of gratitude and an exploration of just what it means to stop and be thankful.

Dr. Duke is the Marlene and Morton H. Meyerson Centennial professor of Music at the Butler School of Music at the University of Texas at Austin. To quote him on gratitude, "When you do think about the capriciousness of life experiences, to me that is a real incentive for even greater levels of gratitude, because once you sort of recognize that you're not the author of your own story entirely, and that there are a lot of things that happen in your life to the good, which you actually had very little to do with, and it doesn't mean that what you did, you had no part in this. It's just that there's a lot of luck involved."

In addition, we're also taking a look back at the year in mental health, through a sampling of some of our most representative episodes from 2023.

Related links:

Real Queens Fix Each Other’s Crowns
Young Minds Matter 2021 Resources: Healing, Justice, and Connection for Mental Wellbeing
Young Minds Matter 2019 Resources: Communities Connecting for Well-being
The Mental Health Cost of Being a Strong Black Woman
Into the Fold Episode 142: Empowering Our Girls in 2023
Into the Fold Episode 135: Black Maternal Mental Health
Into the Fold Episode 124: Changing the Landscape: People, Parks, and Power
Into the Fold Episode 56: Police Violence and Black Women’s Health, Part 1 of 2
Into the Fold Episode 56: Police Violence and Black Women’s Health, Part 2 of 2
Mental Health Awareness Month 2023
Minority Mental Health Awareness Month 2023
Tough Cutie
Open to the Moon, by Brandie Meister

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The theme of our 2023 Young Minds Matter conference is Transforming Our Communities Collectively. With a focus on collaborating with children, youth, and families as decision-makers and leaders in community transformation, it promises to be an energizing opportunity to learn about and from young change-makers.

On our most recent podcast we visited with two such young people, Erika Ngo and Alexander Lopez of the Gulfton community in Houston. They joined us to discuss the essential work of empowering youth to engage in civic discourse and their participation in the upcoming conference.

Related links:

Into the Fold Episode 121: Peer Leadership and Why it Matters
Into the Fold Episode 77: Consumer Voice: Its Role in Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion
Into the Fold Episode 88 Young Minds Matter
How Peer Support Improves Community Mental Health
Voices of Recovery: The Storytelling Showcase
A Royal Visit
More than a Conference: PeerFest

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U.S. Surgeon General Vivek Murthy, issued a public advisory earlier this year titled, the Epidemic of Loneliness and Isolation in the U.S. To quote: “Our epidemic of loneliness and isolation has been an underappreciated public health crisis that has harmed individual and societal health. Our relationships are a source of healing and well-being hiding in plain sight – one that can help us live healthier, more fulfilled, and more productive lives."

How big a problem is loneliness, and what can be done to addess the problem? Here to provide some answers is Jacki Hecht, managing director of the Center for Health Equity Research at the School of Nursing at The University of Texas at Austin and head of the AMEN Program.

Related links:

Surgeon General Advisory on Loneliness
AMEN Program
Register for Young Minds Matter 2023!
Into the Fold, Episode 88: Young Minds Matter

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Kids in 2023 are going back to school at a particularly fraught moment for schools, teachers and parents in Texas. What do kids need this school year in order to thrive? What kind of support do parents and teachers need? Joining us for this conversation are Maria Arrabo of the Amala Foundation, a grantee partner of the Hogg Foundation. And Sharon Vigil, executive director of Communities in Schools of Central Texas.

From the episode:

Amala Foundation
Communities in Schools of Central Texas
Co-signer Spotlight: Trust for America's Health
Declaration of Racism as a Mental Health Crisis

Related links:

Back to School in 2023: Overcoming Fear, Stress, and Anxiety
School-Based Crisis Group Intervention
Episode 148: Music Therapy for Kids

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What does it mean to do public policy work in a state with as challenging a policy environment as Texas? And for Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) communities, what particular challenges confront them in the mental health policy space? And for younger people, who are just learning, just finding their footing, just finding their identity, how is more challenging still?

For this second podcast of Minority Mental Health Awareness Month we are talking to Lily Trieu, interim director of Asian Texans for Justice (ATJ), a statewide nonprofit serving the Asian American Pacific Islander (AAPI) community in Texas, connecting them to civic action to build personal and political power.

Related links:

How We Should Respond to Anti-Asian Racism
Into the Fold Episode 101: Asian American Identity in the Time of COVID-19
Into the Fold Episode 115: Fear of Going Outside: A Podcaster on Asian Identity, Mental Health and Belonging
Into the Fold Episode 132: Asian Americans Attaining Awareness
Bridges, Not Barriers
Sincerely, Hurt
Moore Fellowship Winner Katie McCormick: Contributors of Occupational Stress and Burnout Among Texas Harm Reduction Workers
Mind of Texas Episode 1: Minority Mental Health: Women Knowledge Workers in Higher Education Show Themselves Out

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DAWA, standing for Diversity, Awareness and Wellness in Action, is an Austin-based organization that honors, celebrates, and empowers the essential work of community frontliners and creatives of color through direct financial support, and culturally relevant health-centered programming. In the process they are modeling a form of social entrepreneurship that shows how small organizations can make a big difference, in ways even a major philanthropy like the Hogg Foundation can learn from. Their founder and director, Chaka Moore, is in our studio today to tell us all about it.

Related links:

Hogg Foundation Co-signs Statement in Response to Supreme Court’s Affirmative Action Decision https://ow.ly/JNoi50P7OB7

APA Speaks Out Against Supreme Court Ruling on Affirmative Action in Higher Education https://alert.psychnews.org/2023/06/apa-speaks-out-against-supreme-court.html

Minority Mental Health Awareness Month https://hogg.utexas.edu/minority-mental-health

Episode 69: Mental Health and the Musician's Life https://hogg.utexas.edu/podcast-musician-mental-health

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June is an interesting month for mental health! It is both Pride Month as well as the month of Juneteenth. The theme of emancipation runs through the month —i.e. emancipation from trauma, emancipation from stigma, emancipation from loneliness and isolation.

June also happens to be Men’s Health Month, and Men’s Mental Health Month. Carrying on the emancipation theme, we look at Black men’s mental health with the help of author, speaker and college basketball Hall of Famer Thabiti Boone.

Related links:

Episode 149: Juneteenth and Mental Emancipation https://hogg.utexas.edu/juneteenth-and-mental-emancipation

Episode 83: Minority Men's Mental Health https://hogg.utexas.edu/podcast-minority-mens-mental-health

Episode 52: Black Student Athlete Mental Health https://hogg.utexas.edu/podcast-wnba-athlete-mental-health-sports

Blog post: Uncovering Transgender History in Texas https://hogg.utexas.edu/uncovering-transgender-history-in-texas

SAMHSA Report on lesbian, gay and bisexual behavioral health: https://www.samhsa.gov/data/sites/default/files/reports/rpt41899/2022_LGB_Brief_Final_06_07_23.pdf

Parents article on fathers' mental health: https://www.parents.com/parents-survey-finds-59-of-dads-wish-they-felt-more-seen-7509558

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On today’s Into the Fold we’re talking about Juneteenth, the federal holiday on June 19th that commemorates the day in 1865 that the Emancipation Proclamation went into effect in Texas. Also known as Emancipation Day, it's also an opportunity to celebrate African American mental health and resilience. Helping us do this is mental health advocate Tracy Yvette Green, an awardee of the New Voices Showcase in 2022 and current member of the Hogg Foundation Contributors Circle.

Pride Month Statement https://hogg.utexas.edu/statement-on-lgbtq-pride-month

Mental Health Awareness Month Videos https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PL-twp1sk908vSOOgapujp7hRnqFLGRXos

Op-ed: Listening to all Uvalde voices will promote true healing in the community https://news.utexas.edu/2023/05/24/listening-to-all-voices-in-uvalde-will-promote-true-healing/

Episode 120: Why History? https://hogg.utexas.edu/podcast-why-history

Episode 65: The Past Does Matter: Post-Traumatic Slave Syndrome https://hogg.utexas.edu/podcast-the-past-does-matter

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Today on Into the Fold we’re talking about music therapy as a uniquely powerful way to help kids with their mental health, including for those dealing with traumatic experiences such as parental incarceration. Our guests are Cynthia Smith, founder and director of Sparks for Success, amd Amber Sarpy, one of their music therapists.Related links:Episode 69: Mental Health and the Musician's Lifehttps://hogg.utexas.edu/podcast-musician-mental-healthEpisode 88: Young Minds Matterhttps://hogg.utexas.edu/podcast-young-minds-matterEpisode 136: Diverse Works: A New Art Experiencehttps://hogg.utexas.edu/podcast-mental-health-artMusic credits: Artist: Kevin MacLeodTrack: AcidJazzAlbum of origin: Jazz SamplerCreative Commons Attribution: http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/

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Just last month, for Episode 146, we took a look at some recent successes in public policy by one of our grantee partners, Texas Harm Reduction Alliance. In that episode and in many others we’ve tried to get across that not only is the policy arena a crucial venue for transforming mental health for Texans, but we’ll only truly succeed if we can help build the policy capacity of others. A good recent example is one we’re going to be discussing today. Family Service Center of Galveston is a Hogg Foundation Communities of Care grantee partner. They are part of the The Future is Us collaborative, which works across sectors to address community conditions, practices, and policies that perpetuate racial inequities in the education system in the Galveston area. Their CEO, Dr. Jared Williams, and their public policy director, Keith Henry, join us to talk about their recent achievements in public policy.Related links:Mental Health Awareness Month 2023https://hogg.utexas.edu/mental-health-awareness-monthInto the Fold, Episode 146: Some Good News in Public Policyhttps://hogg.utexas.edu/some-good-news-in-public-policyInto the Fold, Episode 75: Substance Use: A Public Health Approachhttps://hogg.utexas.edu/podcast-substance-use-policyInto the Fold, Episode 28: Jail and Mental Healthhttps://hogg.utexas.edu/episode-28-jail-and-mental-healthInto the Fold, Episode 77: Consumer Voice: It’s Role in Diversity, Equity, and Inclusionhttps://hogg.utexas.edu/podcast-consumer-voiceInto the Fold, Episode 141: Texas Legislative Preview 2023https://hogg.utexas.edu/texas-legislature-preview-2023Mental Health Policy Fellows and Policy Academyhttps://hogg.utexas.edu/what-we-do/policy-engagement/policy-fellows-academy$1.4 Million Awarded to Train Mental Health Policy Fellows in Texashttps://hogg.utexas.edu/news-1-4-million-awarded-to-train-mental-health-policy-fellows-in-texasPolicy Fellows Retrospectivehttps://hogg.utexas.edu/policy-fellows-retrospective

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On April 6, 2023 Texas Gov. Greg Abbott announced a $10 million fentanyl awareness campaign. This will include the Texas Division of Emergency Management delivering a total of 20,000 doses of the overdose-reversing medication, naloxone, more commonly known as Narcan, to all 254 counties in Texas. The distribution of nalaxone is a key plank of the “harm reduction” movement, which advocates for less punitive, more treatment-centered approaches to substance use conditions. Harm reduction has been making a slow and steady climb toward mainstream acceptance, and there are signs here in Texas that it may have finally broken through. Our guest for today, J.J. Ramirez, is an organizer with Texas Harm Reduction Alliance, a statewide organization that aims to end the drug war and its harms through harm reduction outreach, training, advocacy, and organizing. Texas Harm Reduction Alliance is also a grantee of the Hogg Foundation for Mental Health, receiving a Policy Fellows grant in 2022.Related links:Episode #145: Social Work in a Time of Divisionhttps://hogg.utexas.edu/social-work-in-a-time-of-divisionEpisode #144: Teaching in a Time of Divisionhttps://hogg.utexas.edu/teaching-in-a-time-of-divisionEpisode #142: Empowering Our Girls in 2023https://hogg.utexas.edu/episode-142-empowering-our-girls-in-2023Episode #141: Texas Legislative Preview 2023https://hogg.utexas.edu/texas-legislature-preview-2023

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With March being Social Work Month, we thought it worth exploring an increasingly urgent issue within social work: the challenges of doing ethical social work practice in a politically divided time like ours. In Texas, this is especially true for social workers who serve LGBTQ+ clients. How do practicing social workers navigate this difficult terrain? Social workers Kurt Olster and Kimberly Goodwin join us to discuss.Episode 133: Gender-Affirming Care is Trauma-Informed Carehttps://hogg.utexas.edu/podcast-gender-affirming-care-trauma-informed-careHogg History: The Ima Hogg Scholarshipshttps://hogg.utexas.edu/history-of-the-ima-hogg-scholarshipsDon't Mess with Texas Social Workershttps://hogg.utexas.edu/dont-mess-with-texas-social-workersAnnouncing 2022 Ima Hogg Scholarship Recipientshttps://hogg.utexas.edu/hogg-scholarship-recipients-2022Mental Health and Social Policy: A Q&A with Benita Bamgbadehttps://hogg.utexas.edu/mental-health-and-social-policy-a-qa-with-benita-bamgbade

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Public school teaching has never been easy, but the willingness of some lawmakers to crack down on what is taught is unprecedented in recent memory. In Texas, there are signs that lawmakers are ready to follow in the footsteps of Florida, where public school teachers and librarians are now subject to restrictions on books that teach about race, sexual orientation and gender identity. To help us understand what teachers are going through, we talk to Nelva Williamson, an AP African American Studies teacher for Houston Independent School District; and Jesus Sosa, who teaches social studies for Richardson Independent School District.Public school teaching has never been easy, but the willingness of some lawmakers to crack down on what is taught is unprecedented in recent memory. In Texas, there are signs that lawmakers are ready to follow in the footsteps of Florida, where public school teachers and librarians are now subject to restrictions on books that teach about race, sexual orientation and gender identity. To help us understand what teachers are going through, we talk to Nelva Williamson, an AP African American Studies teacher for Houston Independent School District; and Jesus Sosa, who teaches social studies for Richardson Independent School District.Related Links:Mental Health in Schoolshttps://hogg.utexas.edu/podcast-mental-health-schoolsOn the Defensive: How Policy Changes Affect Queer Mental Healthhttps://hogg.utexas.edu/podcast-policy-changes-queer-mental-healthOp Ed: Safe and supportive schools for every Texas studenthttps://hogg.utexas.edu/op-ed-safe-and-supportive-schools-for-every-texas-studentOp-ed: Uproar over critical race theory should not threaten mental health in schoolshttps://hogg.utexas.edu/critical-race-theory-mental-health-in-schools

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The Hogg Foundation, past and present, wants to know more about the people and communities it aims to impact through its work. But during the 1950's this desire for greater knowledge ran headlong into the social and political climate of the time. ]'? Beginning in 1954, the Hogg Foundation conducted the Texas Cooperative Youth Study, a large-scale survey of nearly 13,000 high schoolers. It surveyed their attitudes on a range of issues, including segregation and other hot-button social issues of the time. The study took place the same year as the landmark Brown v. Board of Education Supreme Court case that mandated the desegregation of public schools. Unexpectedly, the study met with a cold reception. White parents were alarmed by the study’s questions, and this response triggered a backlash that even drew in elements of the anti-communist panic emblematic of the time. To help us make sense of this moment in Hogg Foundation history, Aviv Rau is a graduate research assistant for the Hogg Foundation and a graduate student in the Information Studies program at the University of Texas at Austin. And Dr. Don Carleton is executive director of the Briscoe Center for American History at the University of Texas at Austin and the author of, “Red Scare.” Related links:Central Texas African American Healthy Minds winners:https://hogg.utexas.edu/healthy-minds-grants-2023Hogg History: The First National Congress of Black Professionals in Higher Educationhttps://hogg.utexas.edu/hogg-history-the-first-national-congress-of-black-professionals-in-higher-educationHogg and the Story of Texashttps://hogg.utexas.edu/hogg-mental-health-texasWhy History?https://hogg.utexas.edu/podcast-why-historyFrom the Archives: Dr. Kenneth Clark on Racism and Child Well-Beinghttps://hogg.utexas.edu/podcast-dr-kenneth-clark-on-racism-and-child-well-beingFrom the Archives: Roy Wilkins on The Mental Bondage of Racehttps://hogg.utexas.edu/podcast-roy-wilkins

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Girls Empowerment Network seeks to “ignite the power in girls by teaching them the skills to thrive and believe in their ability to be unstoppable.” Ana O’Quin is a newly hired policy fellow for Girls Empowerment Network. On this episode she is joined by her policy mentor, Sarah Miller-Fellows, to shed some light on what “unstoppability” for girls looks like in the year 2023, and how the cultivation of girls' confidence in their leadership skills is essential to mental health.Related links:Empowering Girls Through Policyhttps://hogg.utexas.edu/podcast-empowering-girls-through-policyA Vision for the Future: Policy Priorities, 2023-2024 https://hogg.utexas.edu/policy-priorities-2023-24Building Capacity to Advocate for Mental Health Policy https://hogg.utexas.edu/blog-advocate-mental-health-policyPolicy Fellows Retrospectivehttps://hogg.utexas.edu/policy-fellows-retrospective

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The 88th session of the Texas Legislature kicks off in January. In a time of increasing polarization, mental health stands apart as an issue that lends itself to bipartisan cooperation. But will that be as true in 2023? What can we expect from the Legislature, and what does it mean to do mental health policy in 2023? Joining us to offer some potential answers to these questions is the Hogg Foundation Policy Team: Alison Mohr Boleware, director of policy; Shannon Hoffman, policy program officer; and Angela Ott, policy fellow. Related links:Protecting Kids’ Mental Health in a Time of Polarizationhttps://hogg.utexas.edu/podcast-social-emotional-learningLessons Learned on Public Policyhttps://hogg.utexas.edu/lessons-learned-on-public-policyYoung and Invinciblehttps://hogg.utexas.edu/podcast-young-and-invincibleEmpowering Girls through Policyhttps://hogg.utexas.edu/podcast-empowering-girls-through-policy

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In our What Happened to You? series, we are looking at trauma, at both the individual and community level. COVID-19 has been a generational trauma, affecting children, families, communities, and whole societies. Health care workers have been among the most deeply impacted. For this episode we’re looking at the traumatic impact of COVID on health care workers, through the lens of a concept known as "moral injury." Our two guests are University of Texas at Austin professors Dr. Robert Prentiss, professor of business ethics at the McCombs School of Business; and Dr. Read Pierce, professor of internal medicine at Dell Medical School.

Episode 139: What Happened to You? Part II: Why We Talk About it https://hogg.utexas.edu/what-happened-to-you-part-ii-why-we-talk-about-it

Episode 138: What Happened to You, Part I: Back to School (with Trauma) https://hogg.utexas.edu/what-happened-to-you-part-1

Episode 118: Children in 2021: Grief and Loss https://hogg.utexas.edu/podcast-children-in-2021

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It’s hard to miss the multitude of public conversations about personal trauma taking place these days. Once a very privately held concern, discussing Discussing personal trauma and its long-term impact has become markedly less stigmatized. Increasingly, public discussion is considered empowering, humanizing, and helpful to others with similar experiences.

In the second of our series of podcasts addressing the relationship between trauma and well-being, we Into the Fold host Ike Evans speaks with Dr. Bruce Perry, co-author with Oprah Winfrey of the recent best-selling book, What Happened to You?: Conversations on Trauma, Resilience, and Healing, about the increased openness and evolving approach to understanding trauma.

Episode 138: What Happened to You, Part I: Back to School (with Trauma) https://hogg.utexas.edu/what-happened-to-you-part-1

Episode 133: Gender-Affirming Care is Trauma-Informed Care https://hogg.utexas.edu/podcast-gender-affirming-care-trauma-informed-care

Episode 118: Children in 2021 https://hogg.utexas.edu/podcast-children-in-2021

Sustainable Support for Grieving Students https://hogg.utexas.edu/what-we-do/success-stories/sustainable-support-for-grieving-students

On Trauma and Children’s Mental Health https://hogg.utexas.edu/trauma_conference

Triggered by Lights: Red, White, and Blue https://hogg.utexas.edu/triggered-by-lights-red-white-and-blue

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it has been two months since the horrific mass shooting at Robb Elementary School in Uvalde, Texas. Tragedies like Uvalde are always a chance to revisit what we mean by “safety,” and where mental health fits in to that. And lest we forget, the worst of the COVID pandemic may be over for most kids, but that can't erase the more than 10.5 million children worldwide who have lost one or both parents during the coronavirus pandemic. In this episode we explore the persisting effects on Texas kids of these two recent disasters. The first segment is an interview with Texas Tribune's Brian Lopez about the aftemath of the UValde shooting. In the second segment we hear from Rosie Guzman and Sandy Salinas, both with Communities in Schools of Laredo, a Hogg Foundation grant partner.

Related links:

For Uvalde, Sympathy is Not Enough https://hogg.utexas.edu/for-uvalde-sympathy-is-not-enough

COVID-19 and Our Schools https://hogg.utexas.edu/podcast-covid-19-and-our-schools

Children in 2021 https://hogg.utexas.edu/podcast-children-in-2021

Sustainable Support for Grieving Students https://hogg.utexas.edu/what-we-do/success-stories/sustainable-support-for-grieving-students

Episode 87: Mental Health and School Safety: Finding the Balance https://hogg.utexas.edu/podcast-mental-health-and-school-safety

Episode 129: Protecting Kids’ Mental Health in a Time of Polarization https://hogg.utexas.edu/podcast-social-emotional-learning

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In the summer of 2022 the Hogg Foundation teamed up with the Bullock Museum of Texas to contribute to their summer of programming on mental health. In June of 2022, Hogg Foundation executive director Dr. Octavio N. Martinez, Jr., and Dr. Bill Bush, Texas A&M professor of history and author of Circuit Riders for Mental Health: The Hogg Foundation and Twentieth Century Texas, were the featured guests in a webinar presented by the Bullock Museum. Their conversation connects the past and present of mental health, and shows how building an effective, person-centered mental health system in Texas is a project that spans generations.

Related links:

Hogg State Hospital Archives Project https://hogg.utexas.edu/hogg-foundation-awards-260000-for-austin-state-hospital-archives

Bullock Museum Webinar: Dr. Octavio N. Martinez, Jr. and Dr. William Bush https://utexas.box.com/s/9jpu7bkky2t4tz6uzw30xszarnh18rkj

Episode 25: Circuit Riders for Mental Health Into the Fold, Episode 25: Circuit Riders for Mental Health

The Hogg Foundation: 80 Years of Texas Resilience https://hogg.utexas.edu/the-hogg-foundation-80-years-of-texas-resilience

In Their Words: Mental Health Then and Now https://hogg.utexas.edu/mental-health-then-and-now

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As we close Minority Mental Health Awareness Month, we take a look at one of the most vital domains for the exploration of lived mental health experience: art. Our guest is Velta Brenya, a recent graduate from The University of Texas at Austin, and her unique project: The Double Diversity Digital Art Gallery. Velta created the Double Diversity Digital Art Gallery to highlight the experiences of Black, neurodiverse college students.

In a bonus segment, we preview next month's podcast interview with Adrian Fowler, the first Black program officer to work for the Hogg Foundation.

Related links:

Episode 69: Mental Health and the Musician's Life https://hogg.utexas.edu/podcast-musician-mental-health

Double Diversity Digital Art Gallery https://doublediversityart.wixsite.com/dddag/about

"The Flower that Grew from Concrete" (first art piece discussed in the episode) https://doublediversityart.wixsite.com/dddag/see-the-art?pgid=l43conqk-20a2a177-9b36-4314-8019-7dd1ff2a0bb8

"Veiled Woman in Fron of State Capitol" (second art piece discussed in the episode) https://doublediversityart.wixsite.com/dddag/see-the-art?pgid=l43conqk-030d245f-9217-4943-8a54-8083f5c62918

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One of the biggest disparities affecting people of color in the United States concerns maternal mental health. In 2022, WorkingGroup512, based in East Austin, received a $5,000 grant from the Hogg Foundation for its maternal mental health project. The project provides holistic support and healing to a focus cohort of Black mothers and primary caregivers, ages 16 to 65, caring for at least one child between birth to two years old.

In this episode of the podcast, we speak with Neishai Gregory, a doula who works with Working Group 512, and Virginia Baldwin, a mother and client, to learn more about the organization’s work building a community of care for Black women as they experience the mental health challenges of pregnancy and parenting.

Related links

Healthy Minds Grants 2022 https://hogg.utexas.edu/2021-healthy-minds-grants

Maternal Mental Health: Where Family Well-being Begins https://hogg.utexas.edu/podcast-maternal-mental-health

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This is Part 2 of our month-long conversation on the attack on LGBTQ+ rights and its impact on mental health in Texas. The LGBTQ+ community in Texas is getting it from all sides; not just efforts to ban or sharply curtail gender affirming care, but bans on trans youth participation in sports, book bans, and just the general climate of fear-mongering that cast a shadow over Pride Month this year. Joining us to help connect the dots between the issues, the rhetoric, and people’s mental health are state Rep. Celia Israel of Austin, and Brad Pritchett of Equality Texas.

Related links:

Hogg Foundation Statement on Pride Month https://hogg.utexas.edu/statement-on-lgbtq-pride-month

Episode 133: Gender Affirming Care is Trauma-Informed Care https://hogg.utexas.edu/podcast-gender-affirming-care-trauma-informed-care

Episode 122: Gender Affirmation Can be Life and Death https://hogg.utexas.edu/podcast-gender-affirmation

Episode 82: Gender Identity and Well-being: Toss the Rulebook https://hogg.utexas.edu/podcast-gender-identity-and-well-being

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June is Pride Month. We recognize the contributions lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer/queer plus individuals have made to society--and the continued urgency of their struggle. The LGBTQ+ community has had to fight for acceptance, inclusion, and civil rights in a society that has historically shunned their very existence. The LGBTQ+ community continues to face many obstacles to their individual mental health and well-being, and this has never been more true than in the summer of 2022.

In this episode we explore gender affirming care as a form of trauma-informed care, and what it means to try to be trauma-informed for a community in peril. Our guests are Eli Lawrence, Clinical Supervisor of Behavioral Health for Waterloo Counseling Center; and Andrea Segovia, Senior Policy and Field Advisor for Trans Education Network of Texas.

Related links:

Episode 122: Gender Affirmation Can be Life and Death https://hogg.utexas.edu/podcast-gender-affirmation

Episode 82: Gender Identity and Well-being: Toss the Rulebook https://hogg.utexas.edu/podcast-gender-identity-and-well-being

Hogg Foundation Statement on Pride Month 2022 https://hogg.utexas.edu/statement-on-lgbtq-pride-month

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May is Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month. We’re taking this time of cultural recognition to look at connections between this community and the Hogg Foundation’s core concerns for mental health and health equity.

In Episode 132 of Into the Fold, we speak with three representatives from the Asian Americans Attaining Awareness (AAAA) initiative to explore Asian American mental health in the context of shared collaborative effort: Dr. Aneela Khan, Community Behavioral Health Program Manager at the Asian American Health Coalition of Greater Houston HOPE Clinic; retired Colonel Vipin Kumar, Executive Director of the India House, a nonprofit community resource center in Houston; and Jason Lau, MPH, a project manager for DePelchin Children’s Center in Houston.

Related links:

Episode 115: Fear of Going Outside: A Podcaster on Asian Identity, Mental Health and Belonging https://hogg.utexas.edu/podcast-fear-of-going-outside

Episode 101: Asian American Identity in the Time of COVID-19 https://hogg.utexas.edu/podcast-covid-19-and-asian-americans

How We Should Respond to Anti-Asian Racism https://hogg.utexas.edu/how-we-should-respond-to-anti-asian-racism

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April 22 is Earth Day. It is an opportunity to assess the current health of our physical environment and explore ways to protect and improve it. As young people increasingly express concern about the impacts of climate change, Earth Day is also a natural opportunity to explore the connection between climate anxiety and mental health.

In this episode of Into the Fold, we speak with two passionate community activists from Mi Familia Vota, a grassroots organization working to build Latino political engagement on a variety of civic issues, including environmental justice. Texas Director Angelica Razo, along with Environmental Justice Organizer Esmeralda Gonzalez, discuss their work mobilizing young people to address environmental challenges and advocate for systemic change.

Related links:

Episode 124: Changing the Landscape: People, Parks and Power https://hogg.utexas.edu/podcast-green-space

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The month of March is Women’s History Month. For this milestone 130th episode of our podcast, we put the spotlight on a remarkable woman who we recently lost: Sarah Weddington, who made an enormous contribution to history as a successful litigator in the landmark Roe V. Wade case, and who passed away last December. She appeared in a 1970's episode of The Human Condition, the radio series produced by the Hogg Foundation from 1971 to 1983. We have reproduced this episode for a wide-ranging discussion of Weddington's life and legacy. We are joined by Dr. Laurie Green, professor of history at The University of Texas at Austin.

Consumer Voice: Its Role in Diversity, Equity and Inclusion https://hogg.utexas.edu/podcast-consumer-voice

Women Make History: Maggie Kuhn and the Gray Panthers https://hogg.utexas.edu/podcast-women-make-history-maggie-kuhn-and-the-gray-panthers

From the Archive: Efua Sutherland on Theatre, Literature and Self-rediscovery https://hogg.utexas.edu/podcast-from-the-archive-efua-sutherland

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In this episode of Into the Fold, we explore how today’s toxic political climate may be impacting mental health programs in schools, as described in a recent NBC news article entitled, “Parents protesting ‘critical race theory’ identify a new target: Mental health programs”.

We are joined by Donna Black, president of the Social Emotional Learning Alliance for Texas (SEL4TX) to discuss an educational process known as social-emotional learning, its application in schools, its positive impact on kids’ mental health, and its current mischaracterization in this time of political polarization.

Related links

Healthy Educators for Healthy Kids http://hogg.utexas.edu/what-we-do/success-stories/student-mental-health

Mental Health in Schools https://hogg.utexas.edu/podcast-mental-health-schools

Uproar over critical race theory should not threaten mental health in schools https://hogg.utexas.edu/critical-race-theory-mental-health-in-schools

Mental health in schools is at a tipping point. Here is what needs to happen. https://hogg.utexas.edu/mental-health-in-schools

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In observance of Black History Month 2022, we once again reach back into the Hogg Foundation's archive of episodes of the Human Condition, the radio program that the foundation produced from 1971 to 1983. These rare conversations cover a multitude of subjects against a backdrop of rapid social change--and new developments in mental health. This episode features a revealing conversation with Roy Wilkins (1901-1981), civil rights icon and longtime leader of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People.

Related links:

Episode 76: From the Archives: Dr. Kenneth Clark on Racism and Child Well-Being https://hogg.utexas.edu/podcast-dr-kenneth-clark-on-racism-and-child-well-being

Episode 120: Why History? https://hogg.utexas.edu/podcast-why-history

Episode 65:The Past Does Matter: Post-Traumatic Slave Syndrome https://hogg.utexas.edu/podcast-the-past-does-matter

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The Hogg Foundation recently celebrated the 10th year of the Policy Academy and Policy Fellows initiative, a cornerstone initiative, which is still going strong. Hogg Policy Fellows have gone on to positions of leadership at all levels, and their collective expertise has changed mental health policy in Texas for the better. Later this month the Hogg Foundation will be releasing a report titled, "Hogg Foundation for Mental Health Policy Academy & Policy Fellow Initiative, A Retrospective on a Decade of Investment." To mark the occasion, we brought on David Johnson, criminal justice organizer for Grassroots Leadership of Texas, and an alum of the Policy Fellows program, and Colleen Horton, director of policy for the Hogg Foundation.

Related links:

Episode 75: Substance Use: A Public Health Approach https://hogg.utexas.edu/podcast-substance-use-policy

Episode 79: Maternal Mental Health: Where Family Well-being Begins https://hogg.utexas.edu/podcast-maternal-mental-health

Episode 108: Empowering Girls Through Policy https://hogg.utexas.edu/podcast-empowering-girls-through-policy

Episode 116: Young and Invincible http://hogg.utexas.edu/podcast-young-and-invincible

Episode 126: Vaccine Equity for the Incarcerated https://hogg.utexas.edu/vaccine-equity-for-the-incarcerated

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As we have explored in numerous episodes, COVID-19 has been a pandemic of inequality. For as long as the pandemic has been a mainstay in our lives, the podcast has tried to bring the Hogg Foundation’s equity lens to bear on our discussions of the pandemic’s blighting effects on mental health and well-being. We continue this equity focus with Episode 126, which looks at vaccine access for the current and formerly incarcerated. Our guest is Carl Hunter, a former Hogg Policy Fellow and current executive director of Building Promise USA, an organization dedicated to empowering the formerly incarcerated.

Related links:

Episode 97: The Inequality of COVID-19 https://hogg.utexas.edu/podcast-the-inequality-of-covid-19

Episode 113: Vaccine Equity and Trust https://hogg.utexas.edu/podcast-vaccine-equity-and-trust

Episode 117: Vaccine Equity and Disability Rights https://hogg.utexas.edu/podcast-vaccine-equity-and-disability-rights

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Drawing from insights shared at this year’s Young Minds Matter conference, this episode of Into the Fold calls attention to the connection between healing and justice as it relates to youth mental health and well-being. Focusing on the power and agency of young people, as opposed to their vulnerability, our guest Dr. Nia West-Bey, Senior Policy Analyst at The Center for Law and Social Policy (CLASP)’s Youth Team moderates a conversation with Marissa Howdershelt, Whitney Lee and Darlicia Dublin, three representatives of the Washington D.C. based youth advocacy group, the New Deal for Youth Changemakers.

Related links:

Into the Fold, Episode 88: Young Minds Matter https://hogg.utexas.edu/podcast-young-minds-matter

Young Minds Matter 2021: Conference Videos https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PL-twp1sk908uubAy0Xra9OTSN1Y-3L4tr

Into the Fold, Episode 116: Young and Invincible https://hogg.utexas.edu/podcast-young-and-invincible

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In some ways, “social determinants” is just another way of saying something that should be obvious: that mental health and well-being is radically tied to place. The histories of places, and how physical space is configured, by whom and for whom, is something that has profound ramifications for mental health and well-being. In particular, access to the outdoors is a key social determinant of mental health. It is something that some must struggle to obtain while a fortunate few take it for granted. When the Hogg Foundation launched the Communities of Care initiative in 2018, the opportunity was taken o support a project, Healthy Outdoor Communities Initiative, that works to advance the equitable use of public parks and green space to improve mental health outcomes and quality of life for underserved children and families in the Houston area.

For this episode of Into the Fold, we caught up with Sheila Savannah, director of Prevention Institute, the organization that coordinates the Communities of Care initiative, and Kelly Burnett, activation and volunteer manager of Houston Parks Board, and coordinator of Healthy Outdoor Communities.

Related links:

Episode 119: The First Three Years https://hogg.utexas.edu/podcast-children-in-2021

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According to the World Health Organization, nearly a billion people worldwide have experienced some form of mental illness. This includes an estimated 5% of adults who experience depression, one in seven 10-19-year-olds who have experienced a mental health condition, and suicide being the fourth leading cause of death for young people aged 15-29 years. And people with severe mental disorders such as schizophrenia tend to die 10-20 years earlier than the general population. And that's without mentioning the COVID-19 pandemic.

For this episode, we talk to two experts who have devoted their lives to global mental health. Vikram Patel, MD, is a professor of global health at the Harvard University Chan School of Public Health. In April 2015, he was listed as one of the world's 100 most influential people by TIME magazine. Fran Silvestri is director of the International Institute of Mental Health Leadership.

Related links:

Refugee Resilience and Well-being: A Voice from the Field https://hogg.utexas.edu/podcast-refugee-resilience-and-well-being

To Help Separated Families, Tap Mental Health Experts http://hogg.utexas.edu/help-separated-families

Deportation Anxiety for Today’s Young Adults http://hogg.utexas.edu/deportation-anxiety-young-adults-podcast

Supporting DACA Students http://hogg.utexas.edu/podcast-supporting-daca-students

Deportation Threat and the Children of the Undocumented https://soundcloud.com/hoggfoundation/into-the-fold-episode-13

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The LGBTQIA community has made some tremendous strides in the 21st century. Not only are gay people able to legally marry in the U.S. and many other Western nations, but transgender and nonbinary people have become increasingly visible and accepted among a growing swath of the public. Guides to proper pronoun usage have become increasingly commonplace, while transgender people also model forms of resilience and community-building that we all can learn from.

But despite the progress, LGBTQIA people still face violence, discrimination and other threats to their well-being. For transgender and nonbinary people, there are troubling signs that the current climate is turning back toward repression and worse. Texas, with its lack of legal protections and a stigmatizing political climate, currently falls in the bottom quarter of rankings for support and acceptance of its nearly one million LGBTQIA youth and adults. To make matters worse, a wave of discriminatory legislation currently threatens the civil liberties and protections of LGBTQIA residents in the state.

In this episode of the podcast, Dr. Stephen Russell, an expert on adolescent development and chair of the Department of Human Development and Family Sciences in the College of Natural Sciences at The University of Texas at Austin, takes us through the challenging terrain of gender identity and sexuality, and what these mean for parent-adolescent relationships.

Related links:

Episode 82: Gender Identity and Well-being: Toss the Rulebook https://hogg.utexas.edu/podcast-gender-identity-and-well-being

Texas Must Support an Inclusive Child Welfare System https://news.utexas.edu/2020/01/23/texas-must-support-an-inclusive-child-welfare-system/

Against North Carolina’s HB2 Law: Mental Health and Discrimination Cannot Co-Exist https://hogg.utexas.edu/north-carolinas-hb2-law-mental-health-discrimination-cannot-co-exist-3

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Historically, the mental health system, and the conversation surrounding it, has given more value to the expert opinions of providers and clinicians than the experiences of those living with mental health conditions. Today, elevating the visibility of mental health consumers is now commonplace for mental health organizations, institutions, and leaders who recognize the many advantages of giving mental health consumers more autonomy and authority in the mental health space. But what else needs to happen before we’re able to truly say that mental health consumers have truly arrived?

Helping us answer this is Noah Abdenour, Director of Peer and Recovery Services Programs, Planning and Policy for Texas HHS, and Anna Gray, director of Prosumers, a peer-run organization.

Related links:

Consumer Voice: Its Role in Diversity, Equity and Inclusion https://hogg.utexas.edu/podcast-consumer-voice

In Their Words: On Recovery https://hogg.utexas.edu/in-their-words-on-recovery

Peer Support with an Artistic Flair https://hogg.utexas.edu/peer-support-with-an-artistic-flair

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The teaching of history, like so much else in the present day, has become a political hot button—and The University of Texas at Austin hasn’t been spared. Over the last several months the campus has been roiled by controversies over the names of buildings, the placement of statues, and even the venerable “Eyes of Texas” song. And a largely ginned up controversy over “critical race theory” has been used to cast suspicion on the history profession as a whole. These developments worry historian Dr. Peniel Joseph, our guest for this episode. We explore the connection between history and mental health, as well as tensions on campus, through the eyes of this award-winning author and founding director of the Center for the Study of Race and Democracy at the LBJ School of Public Affairs.

Related links:

Episode 65: The Past Does Matter: Post-traumatic Slave Syndrome https://hogg.utexas.edu/podcast-the-past-does-matter

Episode 73: Moving UT Austin’s Flagship of Diversity Forward https://hogg.utexas.edu/podcast-flagship-of-diversity

Hogg Foundation Statement on UT Student Petition https://hogg.utexas.edu/hogg-foundation-statement-on-ut-student-petition

Relocation of the James Stephen Hogg Statue https://hogg.utexas.edu/james-stephen-hogg-statue

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The impact of COVID on children isn't limited to those of school age. For babies who are just beginning to experience the world amid the upheaval of the pandemic, the success that First3Years, a Hogg Foundation grantee, has had in pivoting its operations is a game-changer. The organization works to support the social and emotional development of infants and toddlers through a combination of training, services, advocacy and collaboration. In this episode Christy Serrano, Houston regional director for First3Years, talks about the key importance of community collaboration for infant and toddler mental health.

Related links:

Episode 118: Children in 2021: Grief and Loss https://hogg.utexas.edu/podcast-children-in-2021

Episode 98: COVID-19 and Children's Mental Health https://hogg.utexas.edu/podcast-covid-19-and-childrens-mental-health

Communities of Care https://hogg.utexas.edu/communities-of-care-mental-health-well-being-houston-area

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A recent Lancet study estimates that up to 1.5 million children worldwide have lost at least one primary or secondary caregiver as a result of the pandemic. Indeed, orphanhood and grief are an essential part of the story of this pandemic, one whose impact is just beginning to be understood. In this episode we explore the connection between caregiver death and children’s mental health with Laura Olague, director of Children’s Grief Center of El Paso, a grantee of the Hogg Foundation.

In a bonus segment, Ryan Sutton, a former guest of the podcast, offers some timely reflections on Simone Biles and athlete mental health.

Related links:

Episode 98: COVID-19 and Children's Mental Health https://hogg.utexas.edu/podcast-covid-19-and-childrens-mental-health

Hogg Foundation Awards $1 Million to Support Children’s Well-being across Texas https://hogg.utexas.edu/hogg-foundation-awards-1-million-to-support-childrens-well-being-across-texas

WNBA Athlete Speaks Up on Mental Health in Sports https://hogg.utexas.edu/podcast-wnba-athlete-mental-health-sports

Mental Health and the Black Student Athlete https://hogg.utexas.edu/black-student-athlete-mental-health

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There is mounting evidence that people with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD) are experiencing more severe COVID-19 outcomes than the general population. In many ways, vaccination is a golden opportunity to address longstanding issues of equity and injustice. Our guest, Dr. Kara Ayers, PhD, is here to help us explore just how true that is for people with disabilities. Dr. Ayers is the Associate Director of the University of Cincinnati Center for Excellence in Developmental Disabilities, and the co-founder of the Disabled Parenting Project.

Related links:

Episode 113: Vaccine Equity and Trust https://hogg.utexas.edu/podcast-vaccine-equity-and-trust

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At the close of the first session of the Texas legislature to take place during the time of COVID, which had an enormous agenda to cover at breakneck speed, one thing is abundantly clear: meaningful engagement with public policy is challenging work. On this episode of the podcast, we sit down with three people dedicated to amplifying the voices of youth and young adults to advance mental health policy work in Texas. Our guests Río Gonzalez, Aurora Harris, and Raquel Murphy are part of Young Invincibles, a national organization with a Texas branch that is one of the Hogg Foundation’s newest grantees of its Policy Academy and Fellows Program, which aims to increase individuals’ and organizations’ capacity to advance mental health policy in Texas while also increasing the consumer voice in policy development and implementation.

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The month of May happens to be both Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month, and Mental Health Month. The current period has been one of tragedy, hope and ongoing tension for Asians in the U.S. Since the COVID-19 pandemic broke out in early 2020, Asians have been frequently scapegoated as bringers of contagion. More recently, a spate of violent attacks on Asian Americans has heightened their sense of vulnerability and brought issues of trauma to the forefront. For this episode of Into the Fold, we sought out comedienne Ivy Le, a second generation Vietnamese American podcaster, writer, performer and activist, to share her perspective on the status of Asian Americans in the year 2021 with a focus on the lessons this holds for those who care about mental health and building a more just and equitable future.

Related links:

Episode 101: Asian American Identity in the Time of COVID-19 https://hogg.utexas.edu/podcast-covid-19-and-asian-americans

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It’s well established that children with histories of abuse demonstrate higher levels of depression, conduct disorder, PTSD, impaired social functioning and other problems. This is deeply entangled with how we discipline them. On this special episode of Into the Fold, we are teaming up with fellow member of the Texas Podcast Network, Marc Airhart, host of the Point of Discovery podcast from the University of Texas at Austin College of Natural Sciences. Together we talk with child discipline expert Dr. Elizabeth Gershoff, professor in the Department of Human Development and Family Sciences at UT Austin and the director of the Population Research Center, who has been studying the effects of physical discipline on children for two decades and is advocating for an end to the practice.

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The term “vaccine hesitancy” is all the rage—but does it adequately explain what is going on in the minds of those who are “hesitant” to get the COVID-19 vaccine? By focusing on the hesitancy of individuals, do we risk losing sight of fundamental problems of access, equity, and trust? This episode features two interviews with experts whose work straddles the lines between medicine, community outreach, and health communications. First, we talk with Dr. Shalonda Horton, Clinical Assistant Professor at the University of Texas at Austin School of Nursing, who is working on the frontlines at mobile vaccine clinics in Austin, followed by a conversation with Chelsea Brass, a communication studies doctoral student and former doctoral fellow for the Center for Health Communication in the Moody College of Communication and Melanie Connolly, a medical illustrator, 3D animator and marketing director for the Austin Healthcare Council, who designed a Vaccine Curiosity Tool to help resolve uncertainty about the COVID-19 vaccine.

Related links:

Episode 70: Designing for Mental Health http://hogg.utexas.edu/podcast-mental-health-design

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It is no longer “news” that the pandemic has devastated the restaurant industry. Here in Austin, dozens of iconic restaurants and venues did not make it through 2020. For the establishments that did survive, workers in the service industry face the daily stress of managing mask and social distancing mandates, dealing with recalcitrant customers, and caring for one’s workforce. Our guest on this episode is Nicole Cruz, a Case Manager at Southern Smoke, an organization that provides help and support to food and beverage industry workers. Nicole joins us to talk about what this unique industry is experiencing and the impact of the last year of the pandemic.

Related links:

Episode 69: Mental Health and the Musician's Life http://hogg.utexas.edu/podcast-musician-mental-health

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On February 14, 2021 the Hogg Foundation and the world lost a champion of mental health, Stephany J. Bryan. Stephany passed away due to complications related to COVID-19, and we at the foundation are deeply feeling this loss. Our dear friend and colleague had a spirit that was larger than life, full of passion, drive, and an unforgettable sense of humor. On this episode of the podcast, we are joined by two members of the Hogg Foundation, Vicky Coffee, Director of Programs, and Tammy Heinz, Senior Program Officer and Consumer & Family Liaison, as well as Luanne Southern, Executive Director of the Texas Child Mental Health Care Consortium – three of Stephany’s longtime friends and colleagues – to celebrate the life and legacy of the one and only Stephany J. Bryan.

Related links:

My Journey of Recovery: Stephany J. Bryan https://hogg.utexas.edu/my-journey-of-recovery-stephany-bryan

Episode 77: Consumer Voice: Its Role in Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion https://hogg.utexas.edu/podcast-consumer-voice

Hogg Foundation Mourns the Passing of Stephany J. Bryan https://hogg.utexas.edu/hogg-foundation-mourns-the-passing-of-stephany-j-bryan

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In recognition of Women’s History Month, we are reaching into our archives to share a conversation between two history makers: Bert Kruger Smith and Maggie Kuhn. In this 1979 episode of The Human Condition, a radio series produced by the Hogg Foundation that ran from 1971 to 1983 on KUT, the show’s host Bert Kruger Smith interviews Maggie Kuhn, an American activist who founded the Gray Panthers movement in 1970. Their conversation puts at center stage the agency and creativity of older people, and addresses the challenges of organizing and mobilizing a specific community for the sake of doing effective advocacy — challenges that still ring true over forty years later.  

Related links:

Episode 33: Nightmare at Noon: The UT Tower Shooting https://hogg.utexas.edu/nightmare-at-noon-the-ut-tower-shooting

Episode 54: Raising the Voices of Individuals with IDD https://hogg.utexas.edu/podcast-self-advocacy-idd

Episode 76: From the Archives: Dr. Kenneth Clark on Racism and Child Well-Being https://hogg.utexas.edu/podcast-dr-kenneth-clark-on-racism-and-child-well-being

Episode 77: Consumer Voice: Its Role in Diversity, Equity and Inclusion https://hogg.utexas.edu/podcast-consumer-voice

Episode 94: From the Archive: Efua Sutherland on Theatre, Literature and Self-rediscovery https://hogg.utexas.edu/podcast-from-the-archive-efua-sutherland

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Last September, the Hogg Foundation issued a unique statement: a Declaration of Racism as a Mental Health Crisis. Its purpose is to call attention to the link between racial justice and mental health, and to argue that racism undermines our collective health and well-being. More than 200 organizations, including non-profits, cities, and public health associations, have co-signed this document. This episode of Into the Fold features a discussion with our three guests, each an esteemed figure in the world of public health: Josè Ramón Fernández-Peña, President at the American Public Health Association (APHA), Dr. J. Nadine Gracia, executive vice president at Trust for America’s Health (TFA), and our own Dr. Octavio N. Martinez, Jr., executive director of the Hogg Foundation. Together we talk about the Declaration, and how a broad effort to take its goals to heart can shape all of our futures for the better.

Related links

Hogg Foundation Declaration of Racism as a Mental Health Crisis https://hogg.utexas.edu/who-we-are/racism-declaration

Episode 97: The Inequality of COVID-19 https://hogg.utexas.edu/podcast-the-inequality-of-covid-19

Episode 66: Moving Upstream; How Funders Can Address Root Causes https://hogg.utexas.edu/podcast-moving-upstream

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For twenty-five years, Girls Empowerment Network has been helping young women across Texas discover that they are unstoppable. They have done so by laser-focusing their curriculum on one critical component: building self-efficacy, which is a girl’s belief in her ability to succeed. On this episode of the Into the Fold, we are joined by Vanessa Beltran, newly hired Mental Health Policy Fellow for Girls Empowerment Network, and her policy mentor Dr. Sarah Miller-Fellows, Director of Impact, to discuss the unique challenges facing girls and how self-efficacy helps young leaders advocate for themselves and their communities.

Related links:

Episode 54: Raising the Voices of Individuals with IDD Raising the Voices of Individuals with IDD https://hogg.utexas.edu/podcast-self-advocacy-idd

Episode 75: Substance Use: A Public Health Approach https://hogg.utexas.edu/podcast-substance-use-policy

Episode 78: Mental Health and Housing: The Need for Alternatives https://hogg.utexas.edu/podcast-mental-health-housing-alternatives

Episode 79: Maternal Mental Health: Where Family Well-being Begins https://hogg.utexas.edu/podcast-maternal-mental-health

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As we enter 2021, most of us are beyond exhausted. In many ways, these awful circumstances of the last year serve as a reminder of just what a moral pivot point the Black American experience has been and continues to be. To put it simply, everything that is going on isn’t just about the Black American experience, but, in many ways, it is not fully comprehensible without the Black American experience. We are joined on this episode by Dr. Chase Anderson, fellow in Child and Adolescent Psychiatry at the University of California San Francisco, to discuss the limits of how helpful our professional identities can be while experiencing racial grief at this time.

Related links:

Episode 65: The Past Does Matter: Post-Traumatic Slave Syndrome https://hogg.utexas.edu/podcast-the-past-does-matter

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Nearly one million Texans do not have physical access to broadband at home. Over eighty-nine percent of these disconnected Texans live in rural areas. Broadly, this is a matter of equity and economic participation, both of which bear on overall well-being in our state. This is especially true during this pandemic, where remote work, school, and health have become the norm. Jennifer Harris serves as the state program director for Connected Nation Texas. She also serves on the Governors Broadband Development Council. Wynn Rosser is CEO of the Temple Foundation, which is dedicated to increasing prosperity and well-being for rural deep East Texas. Both join us on this episode to discuss rural broadband and its pivotal role in the future well-being of Texas.

Related links:

Into the Fold Episode 64: Understanding Rural Communities https://hogg.utexas.edu/podcast-mental-health-rural-communities

Hogg Foundation Awards $4.5 Million to Address Well-being in Rural Texas Communities https://hogg.utexas.edu/texas-rural-communities

The Rural Church Creating Inclusion Through Education https://hogg.utexas.edu/gods-way-faith-based-initiative

What is Texas Doing Wrong When it Comes to Rural Mental Health? https://hogg.utexas.edu/rural-mental-health

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There is currently a strong push in Texas toward diverting people with mental health conditions away from the criminal justice system and into treatment. This is the good news. The bad news is that the demand for flexible, evidence-based, person-centered mental health treatment far outpaces the supply. The state's forensic system is a case in point. In this episode Limestone County Sheriff Dennis Wilson and Kevin Garrett of Texas Jail Project share their complementary perspectives on the issue--one a lawman, the other a person with lived experience of the system.

Related links:

Hogg Policy Fellows https://hogg.utexas.edu/what-we-do/policy-engagement/policy-fellows-academy

Episode 28: Jail and Mental Health https://hogg.utexas.edu/episode-28-jail-and-mental-health

Episode 23: Talking about Forensic Mental Health https://soundcloud.com/hoggfoundation/into-the-fold-episode-23-talking-about-forensic-mental-health

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To say that the media has a public trust problem, earned or not, is an understatement. How should we evaluate the media’s coverage of the pandemic, and how can we all become more savvy media consumers? Joining us to help make sense of these questions is Dr. Timothy Caulfield, Professor of Law at University of Alberta, Canada, Research Director of the Health Law Institute and current Canada Research Chair in Health Law and Policy. He is the author of the national bestseller The Cure for Everything: Untangling the Twisted Messages about Health, Fitness and Happiness (Penguin 2012) and Relax, Dammit!: A User's Guide to the Age of Anxiety (Penguin Random House, 2020).

Related links:

Episode 40: Mental Health and Media: Stop Raising Awareness Already https://hogg.utexas.edu/mental-health-and-media

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Schools have become a flashpoint in the larger debate about how we balance living our lives and keeping ourselves safe during the time of COVID-19. Schools serve as crucial bridge between families, young people, and essential services and community resources. They are also increasingly sites of mental health care. In this episode of Into the Fold we hear from Tasha Moore, Chief Strategy Officer of Communities in Schools of North Texas, which specializes in dropout prevention, and Suki Steinhauser, CEO of Communities in Schools of Central Texas, who share some wisdom about keeping kids in school at a time when ‘school’ no longer means what it used to.

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Related links:

Episode 22: Restorative Discipline in Schools https://hogg.utexas.edu/into-the-fold-episode-22-restorative-discipline-in-schools

Episode 42: Mental Health in Schools https://hogg.utexas.edu/podcast-mental-health-schools

Improving Academic Achievement through Mental Health https://hogg.utexas.edu/initiatives/academic-achievement-mental-health

Healthy Educators for Healthy Kids https://hogg.utexas.edu/what-we-do/success-stories/student-mental-health

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Substance misuse has long been a pain point on college campuses, and the University of Texas at Austin is no different. This week we talked with an organization that is pushing back against the engrained belief that substance misuse is a “rite of passage” for college students, and instead is offering a holistic model for shifting the conversation around substance use on campus. Kate Lower, Director of SHIFT, joins us to discuss the impact the COVID-19 pandemic is having on patterns of substance use among college students during this time of increased environmental changes and isolation.

Related links:

3 Things to Know: Recovery https://hogg.utexas.edu/3-things-to-know-recovery

In Their Words: On Recovery https://hogg.utexas.edu/in-their-words-on-recovery

Episode 51: The Social Entrepreneurship Model https://hogg.utexas.edu/podcast-recovery-social-entrepreneurship

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This week we are joined by Dr. Eric Tang, Associate Professor of African and African Diaspora Studies and Director of the Center for Asian American Studies at The University of Texas at Austin. We discuss COVID-19 and Asian Americans, especially now that the pandemic has brought to the forefront many of our nation’s deep xenophobic biases that harm Asian people of color in the United States, including here on the University of Texas at Austin campus.

Related links:

Episode 100: Black Lives Matter https://hogg.utexas.edu/podcast-black-lives-matter

Episode 13: Deportation Threat and the Children of the Undocumented https://soundcloud.com/hoggfoundation/into-the-fold-episode-13

Episode 45: Deportation Anxiety for Today’s Young Adults http://hogg.utexas.edu/deportation-anxiety-young-adults-podcast

Episode 85: Refugee Resilience and Well-being: A Voice from the Field https://hogg.utexas.edu/podcast-refugee-resilience-and-well-being

Episode 57: Supporting Our Dreamers https://hogg.utexas.edu/podcast-supporting-daca-students

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In this milestone 100th episode of Into the Fold, we dive into the topic of racism and historical trauma with a panel of experts. We are joined by three former podcast guests: Dr. Christen Smith, an associate professor of African and Diaspora Studies and Anthropology at The University of Texas at Austin; Dr. Ryan Sutton, director of the Heman Sweatt Center for Black Males at The University of Texas at Austin; and Latasha Taylor, a mental health organizer and former Hogg Foundation Policy Fellow. Together, we discuss the impact of police brutality on African American mental health and ways non-Black allies can best support their friends and the Black Lives Matter movement.

Deborah "D.E.E.P." Mouton poetry: https://www.livelifedeep.com/ Oddisee: https://www.mellomusicgroup.com/collections/oddisee-collection

Related links:

Episode 65: The Past Does Matter: Post Traumatic Slave Syndrome https://hogg.utexas.edu/podcast-the-past-does-matter

Episode 56: Police Violence and Black Women’s Health https://hogg.utexas.edu/podcast-police-violence-black-women-health-part1

Episode 53: From Advocacy to Mobilization: the Role of the Marginalized https://hogg.utexas.edu/podcast-activism-mental-health

Episode 34: Mental Health and the Black Student Athlete https://hogg.utexas.edu/black-student-athlete-mental-health

Young Minds Matter: Historical and Cultural Trauma https://hogg.utexas.edu/historical-and-cultural-trauma

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With COVID-19 putting unprecedented stress on our already overburdened systems of support for older people, the need to provide for the mental and physical health of this population has reached a critical level. On this episode of the podcast, we are joined for the second time by licensed clinical social worker Carly Bassett, who specializes in mental health care for older adults.

Related links:

Understanding Mental Health in Older Adults https://hogg.utexas.edu/podcast-elderly-mental-heath

How Transportation Affects the Mental Health of Nursing Home Residents https://hogg.utexas.edu/vivian-miller-nursing-home-health

The Health Cost of Aging in America https://hogg.utexas.edu/the-health-cost-of-aging-in-america

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May is Children’s Mental Health Month. Today we are talking about COVID-19 and its effect on children, youth, and families. In the state of Texas, schools have been shut down since mid-March. Millions of children and adolescents have been sheltering at home. Just as much as kids have never needed more attention, parents have never needed more of a break. On top of that, we have good reason to believe that home is necessarily the safest place for kids.

To help make sense of it all, we are joined by a pair of Austin-based experts who come at this from the perspectives of both healthcare professionals and parents. Dr. Allison Hall is a pediatric physical therapist and the CEO/founder of My Kid Blooms, a digital resource for parents to find pediatric and OB/GYN health-related information and professionals that match the needs of their families. Dr. Nakia Scott is a child and adolescent psychiatrist and the owner of Holistic Mental Health.

Related links:

COVID-19: Protecting Kids from the Fear Pandemic http://hogg.utexas.edu/covid-19-protecting-kids-from-the-fear-pandemic

The Inequality of COVID-19 http://hogg.utexas.edu/podcast-the-inequality-of-covid-19

We Protect Health By Prioritizing Equity http://hogg.utexas.edu/we-protect-health-by-prioritizing-equity

Elder Mental Health in the Time of COVID-19 http://hogg.utexas.edu/elder-mental-health-in-the-time-of-covid-19

Behavioral Health Equity in the Time of COVID-19 http://hogg.utexas.edu/behavioral-health-equity-in-the-time-of-covid-19

Sheltering in Uncertainty: Coping with COVID-19 http://hogg.utexas.edu/podcast-sheltering-in-uncertainty-coping-with-covid19

Census 2020 in the Time of Coronavirus http://hogg.utexas.edu/podcast-census-2020-in-the-time-of-coronavirus

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It is fashionable to say that coronavirus doesn't discriminate, but this may be misleading. In fact, there is compelling data suggesting that the COVID-19 pandemic is impacting some communities harder than others. A new study conducted by epidemiologists and clinician-researchers from six organizations and universities across the country found that counties with high rates of African American residents comprised 52 percent of all diagnoses and 58 percent of all COVID-19 deaths nationally. According to an analysis by American Public Media Research, blacks, despite making up about 13% of the US population according to the Census Bureau, are 27% of known COVID-19 deaths. In state after state, there is evidence that this pandemic is having a disproportionate effect on people of color, on the economically precarious, and on already stigmatized populations such as the homeless.

These findings may just be the tip of the iceberg. In this episode, U.S. Rep. Joaquin Castro of San Antonio, representing Texas's 20th congressional district, and Dr. Octavio N. Martinez, Jr., executive director of the Hogg Foundation, join us from their respective worlds of politics and philanthropy to discuss the deep social implications of coronavirus through a health equity lens.

Related links

We Protect Health by Prioritizing Health Equity https://hogg.utexas.edu/we-protect-health-by-prioritizing-equity

Behavioral Health Equity in the Time of COVID-19 https://hogg.utexas.edu/behavioral-health-equity-in-the-time-of-covid-19

Sheltering in Uncertainty: Coping with COVID-19 https://hogg.utexas.edu/podcast-sheltering-in-uncertainty-coping-with-covid19

Census 2020 in the Time of Coronavirus https://hogg.utexas.edu/podcast-census-2020-in-the-time-of-coronavirus

The coronavirus crisis exposes our society’s weaknesses. It’s time to correct them. https://hogg.utexas.edu/the-coronavirus-crisis-exposes-our-societys-weaknesses

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COVID-19 is the world’s biggest story. It is seriously trying people’s emotional, financial, and even spiritual ability to cope. In this episode of Into the Fold, we are joined by Travis County Judge Sarah Eckhardt, who has been front and center in coordinating the official response to the pandemic for Travis County, and Carrie Barron, M.D., Director of Creativity for Resilience Program at Dell Medical School, to discuss the reality of the pandemic and strategies for coping with, and hopefully, finding some peace within, this time of uncertainty.

Related links:

Resources for Mental Health and COVID-19 https://hogg.utexas.edu/news-resources/mental-health-and-covid-19

Census 2020 in the Time of Coronavirus https://hogg.utexas.edu/podcast-census-2020-in-the-time-of-coronavirus

The coronavirus crisis exposes our society’s weaknesses. It’s time to correct them. https://hogg.utexas.edu/the-coronavirus-crisis-exposes-our-societys-weaknesses

COVID-19: Protecting Kids from the Fear Pandemic https://hogg.utexas.edu/covid-19-protecting-kids-from-the-fear-pandemic

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This year’s census is extraordinarily for one main reason. It is taking place under the shadow of a public health emergency: coronavirus, which is currently consuming people’s attention here in the U.S. and worldwide. Our two guests, Katie Martin Lightfoot and Ava Graves, join us to discuss Census 2020 in general and in the impact of coronavirus in particular.

Related links:

Texas Communities Count https://hogg.utexas.edu/initiatives/texas-communities-count

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In honor of Women’s History Month, this episode of Into the Fold features the voices of three extraordinary women in the Hogg Foundation’s history. First, we hear from Bert Kruger Smith, the longtime host of the Human Condition radio series, and her interview guest, Efua Sutherland, the Ghanaian playwright, director, researcher and children’s rights advocate. We also hear from former employee of the Hogg Foundation, Linda Swan-Adkins, whose eye-witness account of the tragic 1966 UT tower shooting is an important piece of Texas history.

Related links:

Episode 77: Consumer Voice: Its Role in Diversity, Equity and Inclusion https://hogg.utexas.edu/podcast-consumer-voice

Episode 33: Nightmare at Noon - The UT Tower Shooting https://hogg.utexas.edu/nightmare-at-noon-the-ut-tower-shooting

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This episode of Into the Fold takes place against the backdrop of the 20th anniversary of the annual Central Texas African American Family Support Conference (CTAAFSC), where we talked with two of the event’s keynote speakers Dr. King Davis, and Dr. Altha J. Stewart, about historic issues of race in psychiatry and the importance of defining health equity as a matter of social justice.

Related links:

Episode 11: The Central Lunatic Asylum for Colored Insane https://hogg.utexas.edu/podcast-patricia-galloway-on-historic-digital-archive-of-psychiatric-hospital-records-from-segregated-era

Episode 26: King Davis on the Segregated Past, the Fractured Present https://hogg.utexas.edu/into-the-fold-episode-26-king-davis-on-the-segregated-past-the-fractured-present

Hogg Foundation Launches Healthy Minds Grants for African American Mental Health, Well-being https://hogg.utexas.edu/hogg-foundation-launches-healthy-minds-grants-for-african-american-mental-health-well-being

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February is Youth Leadership Month. In this episode of Into the Fold, we talk with three young people who are change-makers in their communities. Through two of the Hogg Foundation’s latest initiatives, these youths have been empowered to embrace new leadership opportunities to help improve their neighborhoods and communities. Our three guests, Kam’rin Christal, Cristina Figueroa, and Ricky Longoria, share their experiences with us and offer wisdom on how to further cultivate youth leadership across communities.

Related links:

Episode 88: Young Minds Matter https://hogg.utexas.edu/podcast-young-minds-matter

Robert Lee Sutherland Seminar 2019: Working Together for Rural Well-being https://hogg.utexas.edu/events-networks/rls-seminar

Communities of Care https://hogg.utexas.edu/initiatives/communities-of-care-houston

Collaborative Approaches to Well-being in Rural Communities https://hogg.utexas.edu/initiatives/collaborative-approaches-well-being-rural-communities

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In observance of International Holocaust Remembrance Day on January 27th, this episode of Into the Fold features an interview from a late 1970s episode of the Human Condition, a radio series produced by the Hogg Foundation between 1972 and 1983. Longtime host of the Human Condition, Bert Kruger Smith, speaks with eminent Holocaust scholar Raul Hilberg, who died in 2007, about the conditions that led to the Holocaust and what happened in the minds of the people committing atrocities in the name of the Final Solution to the Jewish Problem.

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Across medicine, psychiatry, and neurology, it was long believed that the immune system held sway over every system in the body - except for the brain. In this episode of Into the Fold, we discuss the newly understood role of microglial cells, which are brain cells that, according to groundbreaking scientific research, prove the interconnectedness of our bodies’ and our minds’ regulatory systems, disrupting centuries-old assumptions about mental, cognitive, and physical health issues. Award-winning journalist Donna Jackson Nakazawa returns to the podcast to discuss the implications of this discovery and her new book, The Angel and the Assassin: The Tiny Brain Cell that Changed the Course of Medicine.

Related links:

Episode 17, Childhood Disrupted https://soundcloud.com/hoggfoundation/episode-17-childhood-disrupted

Episode 32: Early Intervention in Psychosis https://hogg.utexas.edu/early-intervention-in-psychosis

Episode 74: First Episode Psychosis: A Path for Better Outcomes https://hogg.utexas.edu/podcast-first-episode-psychosis

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For many indigenous Americans, Thanksgiving is not just problematic -- it commemorates genocide, dispossession, forced removal, and cultural erasure. This emotional gauntlet has mental health implications that we will be discussing in this episode. For this discussion, we are joined by Angela Vela-Arce, master's student at the University of Texas at Austin School of Social Work and director of the Native American and Indigenous Collective, which is part of the Multicultural Engagement Center at UT Austin. Angela brings a perspective on indigenous mental health that speaks to the experiences of young people and indigenous students on campus.

Related links:

Episode 67: Supporting DACA Students https://hogg.utexas.edu/podcast-supporting-daca-students

Episode 65: The Past Does Matter: Post-Traumatic Slave Syndrome https://hogg.utexas.edu/podcast-the-past-does-matter

Episode 88: Young Minds Matter https://hogg.utexas.edu/podcast-young-minds-matter

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This episode takes place against the backdrop of Young Minds Matter 2019, a one-day conference held by the Hogg Foundation in Houston, Texas on Oct. 23, 2019. The theme for the event was “Community Connections for Well-being.” We unpack what that phrase means with the help of three powerful, unique voices from the event: Marlon Lizama, a Houston spoken word artist and co-founder of the Iconoclast Artists program that empowers youth through the arts; Dr. Howard Pinderhughes, chair of the Department of Social and Behavioral Science at University of California San Francisco; and Dr. Nia West-Bey, a senior policy analyst with the Center for Law and Social Policy (CLASP). Weaving together strands that include themes of historical and cultural trauma, personal narrative, poetry and social science, these conversations converge on the central question: What does it truly mean to care about young minds?

Related links:

Young Minds Matter 2019 https://hogg.utexas.edu/events-networks/young-minds-matter

Young Minds Matter: Historical and Cultural Trauma https://hogg.utexas.edu/historical-and-cultural-trauma

Episode 65: The Past Does Matter: A Look at Post-Traumatic Slave Syndrome https://hogg.utexas.edu/podcast-the-past-does-matter

Episode 36: Youth in Transition: From Support to Empowerment https://hogg.utexas.edu/transition-age-youth

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Leading into the 86th Texas Legislative Session, much attention was given to the topics of mental health and safety in schools. Recent tragedies, including the Santa Fe High School shooting, emphasized the need to explore how to best support students, their teachers, and our schools as a whole. Senate Bill 11 (SB11), a major focus of this session, aimed to address safe and supportive schools, with mental health being just one component of this legislation.

This week we are joined by Tracey Spinner, Director of Comprehensive Health Services and Mental Health for Austin Independent School District (AISD), and Shannon Hoffman, Policy Program Specialist for the Hogg Foundation for Mental Health, to discuss SB11, and the challenges of and strategies for balancing mental health and safety in schools.

Related links:

Episode 42: Mental Health in Schools http://hogg.utexas.edu/podcast-mental-health-schools

Episode 22: Restorative Discipline in Schools http://hogg.utexas.edu/into-the-fold-episode-22-restorative-discipline-in-schools

Healthy Educators for Healthy Kids http://hogg.utexas.edu/what-we-do/success-stories/student-mental-health

Finding Common Ground on School Safety http://hogg.utexas.edu/school-safety

What We Can Do for Our Kids Following the Santa Fe Shooting http://hogg.utexas.edu/santa-fe-shooting

Mental health in schools is at a tipping point. Here is what needs to happen. http://hogg.utexas.edu/mental-health-in-schools

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The troubling issue of youth suicide has emerged as a top-level concern for the community of Brooks County, Texas. Located in far South Texas, Brooks is one of the most underserved regions in the state. Ranked next-to-last out of 242 Texas counties on overall health outcomes by Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF), Brooks County has a 32 percent poverty rate amid a 90 percent Hispanic population.

The month of September is Suicide Awareness Month. We're taking a look at suicide as a community-level problem, one that calls for community-level solutions. April Anzaldua, Project Director for the Behavioral and Health Outreach Leadership Development (BHOLD) Project, joins us for a discussion of the challenges and strengths of Brooks County youth in the context of her collaborative work.

Related links:

Reflections from the Working Together for Rural Well-being Seminar http://hogg.utexas.edu/podcast-rls-reflections

Five Rural Counties on a Mental Health Mission http://hogg.utexas.edu/five-rural-counties

Collaborative Approaches to Well-being in Rural Communities http://hogg.utexas.edu/initiatives/collaborative-approaches-well-being-rural-communities

Understanding Rural Communities http://hogg.utexas.edu/podcast-mental-health-rural-communities

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Refugees have a lot to teach us about resilience. Amid all the uncertainty, they work hard to maintain family and community ties, keep up their optimism, and look after their physical and mental health. Our guest for this episode, Dr. Sophia Banu, is a psychiatrist and founder of the Clinic for International Trauma Survivors in Houston, Texas. She has extensive experience working with torture survivors and refugees from countries all over the world.

Related links:

To Help Separated Families, Tap Mental Health Experts http://hogg.utexas.edu/help-separated-families

Deportation Anxiety for Today’s Young Adults http://hogg.utexas.edu/deportation-anxiety-young-adults-podcast

Supporting DACA Students http://hogg.utexas.edu/podcast-supporting-daca-students

Deportation Threat and the Children of the Undocumented https://soundcloud.com/hoggfoundation/into-the-fold-episode-13

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In June, as part of an ongoing effort to support people experiencing homelessness and strengthen conditions that aid well-being and recovery, the Austin City Council voted to decriminalize the act of sitting, laying or camping in public places. The policy, which altered three city ordinances and went into effect the following month, has earned its fair share of detractors who cite fears for public safety and potential violations of private property as reason for dissent.

Steve Adler is the 52nd Mayor of the city of Austin, Texas. In this episode, he discusses the new city ordinance that has divided public opinion.

Related links:

Episode 78: Mental Health and Housing: The Need for Alternatives http://hogg.utexas.edu/podcast-mental-health-housing-alternatives

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July is Minority Mental Health Awareness Month. Amid the growing conversation around men and mental health, there is also an increasing focus on the unique pressures facing men of color in our society. What should the mental health profession be keeping in mind about the well-being of this diverse population? What can these men do to help themselves, and how can they be better supported? Here to help us explore solutions is Dr. Calvin Kelly, dean of students at St. Edward’s University in Austin, Texas.

Episode 10: The Threat of Stereotypes http://hogg.utexas.edu/into-the-fold-episode-10-the-threat-of-stereotypes

Episode 6: The Past Does Matter: A Look at Post-Traumatic Slave Syndrome http://hogg.utexas.edu/podcast-the-past-does-matter

Episode 34: Mental Health and the Black Student Athlete http://hogg.utexas.edu/black-student-athlete-mental-health

How to Make Real Mental Health Changes for Men of Color http://hogg.utexas.edu/minority-men-mental-health

Making Connections for Mental Health and Wellbeing Among Men and Boys https://www.preventioninstitute.org/projects/making-connections-mental-health-and-wellbeing-among-men-and-boys

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In the midst of LGBTQ Pride Month, Shane Whalley, a genderqueer social worker, educator and facilitator in Austin, Texas, joined us to talk about the intersection of mental well-being and gender identity, as shown through the lens of hir own lived experience.

Lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, intersex and allied (LGBTQIA) people have seen great progress in recent decades, but the recent change in the political and social climate of the U.S., combined with ongoing stigma and discrimination, is threatening this community's civil rights and mental health. A recent report by the Williams Institute at UCLA School of Law ranks Texas in the bottom quarter of states in terms of social support for LGBTQIA people. Whalley is determined to change this. Listen to today's episode to hear Whalley's story, get educated about pronouns, and learn how to be an effective ally.

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With record numbers of Americans now living to age 90 and beyond, the mental health, in addition to the physical health, of this population needs our focus. Even if an older adult makes monthly trips to their primary care provider, cases of depression and anxiety might be misdiagnosed or disregarded altogether due to age-based biases. In an older patient, telltale signs of depression — such as gaps in memory, loss of appetite and withdrawal from social circles — are too often conflated with symptoms of dementia, Alzheimer’s and other potentially co-occurring illnesses.

On this episode, Carly Bassett of Family Eldercare in Austin shares advice on how to support the mental health of older adults.

Wallace Award Winner Completes Doctoral Dissertation http://hogg.utexas.edu/the-health-cost-of-aging-in-america

The Health Cost of Aging in America http://hogg.utexas.edu/wallace-award-winner-completes-doctoral-dissertation

The State of Mental Health and Aging in America https://www.cdc.gov/aging/pdf/mental_health.pdf

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For the 80th episode of our Into the Fold podcast, we are sharing key takeaways from last month’s Robert Lee Sutherland Seminar, which took place in Bastrop, Texas. For one special day, people from across Texas, from all walks of life and professions, converged to learn together and share inspiration around the timely theme of “Working Together for Rural Well-being.”

Beginning in 1978, the Robert Lee Sutherland Seminar is a biennial event of the Hogg Foundation—each year focusing on a different mental health topic. For this special episode, we caught up with some attendees to get their reflections about the topics discussed at the event. Two themes emerged: the need to strengthen connections and move upstream.

Seminar Slides: http://hogg.utexas.edu/events-networks/rls-seminar/resources

5 Rural Counties on a Mental Health Mission: http://hogg.utexas.edu/five-rural-counties

Perspectives: Collaborating for Community Change http://hogg.utexas.edu/perspectives-speakers

Video: Robert Shankle on Impact Lufkin https://youtu.be/FACOmmz8W54

3 Things to Know: Social Determinants of (Mental)Health http://hogg.utexas.edu/3-things-to-know-social-determinants-of-mental-health

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May is Children’s Mental Health Month. For children to thrive and be healthy, it’s important to provide supports for every aspect of child development—to nurture their environments and relationships as much as the children themselves. Maternal mental health has emerged as an important area of forward-thinking policy and person-centered practice that positively impacts children. On this episode Kaitlyn Doerge of Texas Pediatric Society and Adriana Kohler of Texans Care for Children provide valuable insight on the scope of the challenge and what it means for Texas children.

Related links:

The “Double Stigma” Faced by Adolescent Mothers with Depression http://hogg.utexas.edu/double-stigma-faced-adolescent-mothers-depression

Postpartum Depression and Women’s Mental Health Literacy http://hogg.utexas.edu/wallace-award-winner-postpartum-depression-and-womens-mental-health-literacy

Alone No More: How Texas Policymakers How Texas Policymakers Can Support Mothers with Perinatal Depression https://static1.squarespace.com/static/5728d34462cd94b84dc567ed/t/5a26fea6e4966b4e248d8d9b/1512505003628/Perinatal-Report-2017.pdf

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A crucial part of mental health and substance use recovery is giving people the ability to live independently in the community. The availability of safe, stable, affordable housing is a vital index of community well-being, and an important point of focus for policy. For those with mental health and substance use conditions, living on one’s own with the right services and supports often marks the transition from stabilization of symptoms to a more meaningful sense of recovery. Tanya Lavelle, policy specialist for the Hogg Foundation, discusses the ins and outs of this often overlooked, but absolutely vital, piece of the mental health and well-being puzzle.

Related links:

Episode 74: First-episode Psychosis: A Path for Better Outcomes http://hogg.utexas.edu/podcast-first-episode-psychosis

Episode 75: Substance Use: A Public Health Approach http://hogg.utexas.edu/podcast-substance-use-policy

Episode 51: The Social Entrepreneurship Model http://hogg.utexas.edu/podcast-recovery-social-entrepreneurship

A Guide to Understanding Mental Health Systems and Services in Texas, 4th ed. http://hogg.utexas.edu/what-we-do/policy-engagement/mental-health-guide

2019 Hogg Policy Priorities http://hogg.utexas.edu/hogg-foundation-policy-priorities-2020-2021

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The Hogg Foundation seeks to broaden the conversation around mental health to include the perspectives of mental health consumers, defined as people with lived experience of mental health issues who have often been poorly served by the mental health system. To reinforce this commitment, a little over a decade ago the foundation hired its first two consumer and family liaisons, Stephany Bryan and Tammy Heinz. In addition to their valuable work as program officers, Stephany and Tammy work to infuse the consumer perspective into the Hogg Foundation’s work and priorities.

After 10 years, Stephany Bryan and Tammy Heinz are still going strong at the Hogg Foundation. For this episode, we look back at some of the highpoints of their time with the foundation and discuss the connection between consumers and the current effort to transform how communities promote mental health in everyday life.

Related links:

Episode 2: On Coming Out

Episode 53: From Advocacy to Mobilization: the Role of the Marginalized http://hogg.utexas.edu/podcast-activism-mental-health

East Texas Coalition for Mental Health Recovery http://hogg.utexas.edu/initiatives/east-texas-coalition-recovery

Via Hope https://hogg.utexas.edu/initiatives/via-hope

Advancing Recovery in Texas https://hogg.utexas.edu/initiatives/advancing-recovery-in-texas

Recovery to Practice https://hogg.utexas.edu/initiatives/recovery-to-practice

Texas Recovery Movement pamphlet http://hogg.utexas.edu/project/texas-recovery-movement

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The impact of racism and other forms of inequity on the emotional development of children has been heavily studied over the decades. In recognition of Black History Month, this episode of Into the Fold takes us back into The Human Condition radio show archives with a 1974 broadcast featuring the late African American psychologist Dr. Kenneth Clark, whose innovative research in child psychology—conducted alongside his wife, Mamie Phipps Clark—played a pivotal role in winning the legal battle against segregation in schools. Today, we spotlight his  groundbreaking scholarship as well as his advocacy for civil and human rights.

About The Human Condition: From 1971 to 1983, former Hogg Foundation program officer Bert Kruger Smith hosted this radio show, engaging hundreds of notable guests in wide-ranging conversations on the things that make us human.

Related links:

The Human Condition on iTunes https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/the-human-condition/id919554926?mt=2

Episode 13: Deportation Anxiety and the Children of the Undcoumented https://soundcloud.com/hoggfoundation/into-the-fold-episode-13

Episode 56: Police Violence and Black Women's Health http://hogg.utexas.edu/podcast-police-violence-black-women-health-part1

3 Things to Know blog series http://hogg.utexas.edu/3-things-well-being http://hogg.utexas.edu/3-things-resilience http://hogg.utexas.edu/3-things-to-know-social-determinants-of-mental-health http://hogg.utexas.edu/3-things-to-know-health-equity

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Substance use issues often co-occur with mental health challenges. For people and communities struggling with both, our lack of a fully integrated, person-centered, prevention-oriented public health system exacts a heavy toll. Partly in response to the opioid crisis, there is now growing momentum toward policy changes that emphasis treatment and prevention rather than stigma and incarceration. This openness to new approaches has made its way to Texas, just in time for the 86th Legislature which got underway last month.

Shannon Hoffman, policy fellow for the Hogg Foundation, is an expert on substance use policy and is following this issue in the state Legislature closely. She is here to help us break down this broad and complex area of policy, and help us understand why Texans may have cause for optimism this session.

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Evidence suggests that psychosis may have a similar disease course to other chronic illnesses. Cancer, for example, progresses along a continuum, and we know that if we intervene early we can create optimal outcomes for a cancer diagnosis. More and more we’re seeing this understanding translate into care for psychosis as well.

A younger person’s first psychotic episode is a crossroads moment. Depending on the timeliness and quality of help he or she receives, there can be either a positive prognosis or one that’s far more uncertain. Coordinated Specialty Care (CSC), a novel team-based approach to first-episode psychosis, may provide the framework we need to ensure more optimal outcomes for young adults.

Colleen Horton, policy director for the Hogg Foundation for Mental Health, and Greg Hansch, public policy director for National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) Texas, are working to make sure that CSC is on the Texas policy agenda in 2019. For this episode, we’re learning what is at stake for Texans on this issue, and how CSC is a potential game-changer for young adults, their families, and Texas taxpayers.

Related links:

Episode 32: Early Intervention in Psychosis http://hogg.utexas.edu/early-intervention-in-psychosis

Blog post: We Are Failing Young Adults with Psychosis http://hogg.utexas.edu/we-are-failing-young-adults-with-psychosis

A Guide to Understanding Mental Health Systems and Services in Texas http://hogg.utexas.edu/mh-guide

Hogg Foundation Policy Priorities http://hogg.utexas.edu/hogg-foundation-policy-priorities-2020-2021

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The Hogg Foundation is part of a larger family. Not only are we part of The University of Texas at Austin, but since 2007 we have belonged to the Division of Diversity and Community Engagement (DDCE). DDCE is huge, consisting of a multitude of units and constituent organizations that all contribute to the Division’s central mission of making diversity and community engagement a top priority for The University of Texas at Austin.

This means that Dr. Leonard Moore, named the new vice president for diversity and community engagement this past June, has a lot on his plate. With his infectious energy and passion for mentoring young people, he leads DDCE's efforts to shape UT Austin into a welcoming and invigorating space for a diverse, international student body. On this episode he talks about his vision for the Division, and what the greater Austin community has a right to expect from an engaged flagship university.

Related episodes:

Episode 70: Designing for Mental Health http://hogg.utexas.edu/podcast-mental-health-design

Episode 60: Mental Health in the College Classroom http://hogg.utexas.edu/podcast-college-mental-health

Episode 57: Supporting Our Dreamers http://hogg.utexas.edu/podcast-supporting-daca-students

Episode 56: Police Violence and Black Women's Health http://hogg.utexas.edu/podcast-police-violence-black-women-health-part1

Episode 52: Black Student Athlete Mental Health: A Player Speaks http://hogg.utexas.edu/podcast-wnba-athlete-mental-health-sports

Episode 49: Building a Model Healthy City http://hogg.utexas.edu/podcast-build-healthy-city

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Why would a secular foundation enter into a partnership with faith organizations? In the words of one our guests, Dr. Brenda Richardson Rowe, "Mental health is truly everybody's business, and when you look at the history specifically of the African-American culture, you see that the foundation of all of our information comes from our pastors and our faith leaders."

In 2014, the Hogg Foundation launched a groundbreaking new initiative; the African-American Faith-Based Education and Awareness Initiative (AAFBEAI). The foundation awarded grants to 11 faith-based organizations to start or strengthen dialogues about mental health—both within their respective places of worship and in surrounding communities. The AAFBEAI has recently come to a close. Those who have taken part are proud of what they've achieved. Joining us for a look back are Dr. Brenda Richardson Rowe, a licensed professional counselor at Harmony Counseling Center in Dallas, and Dr. Dennis Young, pastor at Missouri City Baptist Church in Missouri City, TX.

Related links:

http://hogg.utexas.edu/texas-rural-communities http://hogg.utexas.edu/podcast-mental-health-rural-communities http://hogg.utexas.edu/podcast-moving-upstream

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The Well-being in Rural Communities initiative aims to support rural communities in their efforts to transform their own mental health. A total of about $2 million was awarded to organizations in five rural communities in Texas: Bastrop, Brooks, Morris, Nacogdoches, and Victoria counties.

Funders are fond of talking about the impact their grantmaking has on people and communities, but it works both ways: difference-making organizations are transformed by their engagement with communities. On this episode Tammy Heinz and Rick Ybarra, program officers for the Hogg Foundation, talk about what mutual transformation looks like for both individuals and organizations.

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History matters, but it also presents challenges for those hoping to move past trauma and toward healing. This is as true for historically oppressed groups as it is for individuals.

In this episode for Minority Mental Health Awareness Month, Dr. Ryan Sutton, director of the African American Male Research Initiative at the University of Texas Austin, leads us through a conversation about Post-traumatic Slave Syndrome (PTSS) and how taking account of history in the right way can support the therapeutic endeavor.

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The Hogg Foundation has launched a new grant initiative that we are calling Well-being in Rural Communities. It’s focus is five rural counties in Texas: Bastrop, Brooks, Nacogdoches, Titus and Victoria. Its goal is to support collaborative learning, planning and action to transform mental health and well-being in those communities.

This is an ambitious goal. For it to succeed, we must advance in our own understanding of how to build bridges with rural communities. Our guest, Dennis Mohatt, is a former member of the Hogg Foundation’s National Advisory Council. In this episode, he draws on his long and deep experience in rural communities to help us flesh out what it means to be involved in these communities, and what the right kind of involvement looks like.

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Recovery to Practice (RTP) was launched by Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) in 2013 aimed at infusing recovery principles into six behavioral health professions: psychology, psychiatry, nursing, social work, peer support and addiction counseling. In 2015, the Hogg Foundation launched its own RTP grant program to disseminate the recovery curriculum throughout Texas. Since then, six organizations have received funds totaling $1.7 million.

One grantee is the University of North Texas (UNT), Department of Disability & Addiction Rehabilitation. Program coordinator Carrie Breedlove, MS, LPC, joins the podcast to discuss how to bring recovery-oriented principles to the field of substance use.

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June is PTSD Awareness Month. One group in particular, veterans, has a huge stake in our advancing understanding of PTSD and ways to treat it. There are 1.4 million veterans in Texas, and while many military families are resilient, some struggle with behavioral health concerns.

The UTHealth Trauma and Resilience Center just opened its doors at The University of Texas Health Science Center at Houston. This first-of-its-kind center takes a team-based, integrated approach to the behavioral health needs of veterans and their families. Dr. Jair Soares joins us to talk about the vision for the new center and what it means for understanding of PTSD.

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During the last couple weeks of March, a series of package bombings shook the community of Austin, Texas and made national headlines. This tragedy hits close to home for many in Austin, including us here at the Hogg Foundation. In response, we co-organized an event, called Hope for Healing, which took place in East Austin—the area of town where a number of the bombings occurred. The event offered dialogue, healing and connection, as well as candid conversation about what many of us experienced.

One of the featured speakers was Joseph Parker, Senior Pastor of David Chapel Missionary Baptist Church in Austin. In this conversation, he share his thoughts on the role faith has to play in community responses to, and ultimate recovery from, trauma.

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Last year, when Hurricane Harvey hit Houston and other communities in Texas, “resilience” was a hot topic. For those of us interested in transforming how communities promote mental health, resilience is more than just a catch-word, but a phenomenon that needs rigorous study and nuanced understanding. What do we need to know about resilience, how is it fostered, and what does fostering resilience commit us to doing?

Helping us to answer these questions is Wendy Ellis, the project director of the Building Community Resilience collaborative at the Milken Institute School of Public Health at George Washington University. She is joined by Lourdes Rodriguez, director of the Center for Place-Based Initiatives at Dell Medical School at the University of Texas at Austin.

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Episode 60: Mental Health in the College Classroom by Hogg Foundation for Mental Health

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At just over 20 years old, the Bexar County Community Health Collaborative has evolved into a powerful enterprise that brings a synergistic approach to solving critical community health needs. It's also a model of an organization with a proven track record of managing the challenges of collaborating across sectors. Elizabeth Lutz, executive director of the Collaborative, along with board members Bob Ferrar and Pilar Oates, join us to discuss what their organization's success has meant for the people of their community.

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In Texas, there are more than 120,000 recipients of Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA), a program initiated under the Obama administration that provides administrative reprieve from deportation proceedings to qualified young people who meet certain criteria. Many of those young people are now on our college campuses, going about their lives as students. With DACA's fate now up in the air, it's time to take a look at the mental health needs of DACA students, or Dreamers, as they're know.

Joining us for this important conversation is Sebastian Colon-Otero, a counselor at the Counseling and Mental Health Center at the University of Texas at Austin. He discusses his work with DACA students, how he understands his role as a therapist, and how to have a healing conversation in uncertain times.

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This is the second part of our conversation with Dr. Christen Smith about the effects of police violence and other forms of inequality on the health of blacks in the U.S. and beyond. Here, we put the Hogg Foundation's own home city, Austin, Texas, under the microscope for a conversation about the relationship between inequality and health. You are highly encouraged to listen to Part 1. Thanks for listening!

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“Health” is not something that exists in a vacuum. The Hogg Foundation is driven by our conviction that a more just world is also a healthier one. That’s one of the reasons why we talk so often about the “social determinants of health.” The World Health Organization defines social determinants as “the conditions in which people are born, grow, work, live, and age, and the wider set of forces and systems shaping the conditions of daily life.”

For blacks in the U.S., a key social determinant is the community impact of unequal policing. In this episode, Dr. Christen Smith, an associate professor of African and Diaspora Studies and anthropology at The University of Texas, and the host, Ike Evans, sit down for a wide-ranging conversation about the impact of inequality on the health and well-being of blacks in the U.S. and beyond, using recent events such as the tragic death of Erica Garner in December 2017 as a backdrop.

The episode is broken into Parts 1 and 2. We hope you listen to both!

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Austin has a vaunted reputation as the "Live Music Capital of the World", and the city's signature live music event, Austin City Limits, is taking place right now over the next two weekends. It's a blast for music lovers and a cash cow for the city. But to say that the highly competitive and demanding Austin music scene can tax a musician's mental health is an understatement. The SIMS Foundation was started in 1995. It is named in honor of Sims Ellison, an Austin musician who took his own life. Today, the organization serves about 600 musicians and music industry workers a year, connecting them to sorely-needed services and supports.

On this episode Patsy Bouressa, SIMS clinical director, and Vanessa Lively, an Austin-area musician who heads her own nonprofit, Home Street Music, shed some light on the mental health needs of this community, and why music fans, in Austin and elsewhere, should be paying attention.

Music credit: "A Chain Unbroken" by Vanessa Lively. https://www.amazon.com/Chain-Unbroken-Vanessa-Lively/dp/B0016CP11Y

Related link: http://hogg.utexas.edu/podcast-wnba-athlete-mental-health-sports

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It's an exciting moment for mental health philanthropy in Texas. Increasingly, there is an awareness that mental health is too complex a problem to address without collaboration across different sectors--health and human services, housing, criminal justice, and education to name a few. "Collaboration" is an idea that is widely invoked, but rarely broken down into its core elements.

In this episode Katy Bourgeois, a senior consultant with Mission Capital of Austin, is here to inform and educate on collaboratives--why they matter, and how to do them well. She is joined by Tammy Heinz, program officer and consumer & family liaison for the Hogg Foundation. We’re here to talk about cross-sector collaboration, and its role in addressing complex issues like mental health.

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A recent investigation by National Public Radio found that people with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD) are sexually assaulted at a rate seven times greater than that of the general population, according to statistics NPR received from the Department of Justice. Not only is their likelihood of victimizations far higher, but the vast majority of cases go unprosecuted.

James Meadours, an advocate for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities, and Colleen Horton, a policy program officer for the Hogg Foundation, join us for a candid look at abuse in the lives of people with IDD, focusing not just on their victimization but on their role as effective advocates for system changes.

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As an organization the Hogg Foundation aims not just to advance mental health and wellness, but to make a positive impact on the world more generally, particularly in historically marginalized communities. Advocating for marginalized communities implies an ongoing relationship that takes time to grow. In this episode Latasha Taylor, mental health organizer for Grassroots Leadership of Texas and a peer policy fellow for the Hogg Foundation, offers up her thoughts on what it means to advocate for marginalized communities and why it matters.

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Imani McGee-Stafford was a standout for the University of Texas women's basketball team, and now plays for the WNBA's Atlanta Dream. At the time of this interview, she was fresh off addressing a rapt audience at the Black Student Athlete Summit, which took place in January 2018 on the campus of her alma-mater. McGee-Stafford is a survivor of abuse and suicidal depression, and is now on a recovery path. In this episode, learn how mental health challenges can show up in the life of an elite athlete, and how the culture of sports can impact mental health and wellness, both positively and negatively.

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Jason Howell, executive director of SoberHood, is a self-defined social entrepreneur. A simple definition of the term comes from the Schwab Foundation for Social Entrepreneurship: the social entrepreneur is one who "achieves large scale, systemic and sustainable social change through a new invention, a different approach, a more rigorous application of known technologies or strategies, or a combination of these."

If this implies a willingness to challenge orthodoxy as well as wear several different hats, Jason Howell fits the bill. In this episode of the podcast, Howell talks about his journey of recovery from substance use, and his recent successes at using recovery principles as pillars for creative, organized enterprises that make a difference in people's lives.

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In the world of mental health, "resilience" emerges as a key concept. An unexpected disaster like Hurricane Harvey is a prime opportunity for a conversation about resilience and the conditions, institutions and practices that foster it. Jameisha Brown, a PhD student at Texas A&M University, directs the health ministry at Windsor Village United Methodist Church in Houston. In this episode, she shares with us her hopes and fears for post-Harvey Houston, as well as what her experience has taught her about the intersections of faith, resilience and health.

Windsor Village was a recipient of a Hogg Foundation grant supporting faith-based organizations as promoters of mental health and wellness in predominantly African American communities. In a follow-up segment, Vicky Coffee, a program officer at the Hogg Foundation, talks about this unique grant initiative and the impact it's having in Texas.

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More people are beginning to recognize the connection between community factors — quality of life, level of civic engagement, economic development, education, and many others — and individual well-being, including mental health. Dell Medical School, in Austin, Texas, has emerged as a hub for some of the latest thinking on how to approach community wellness in this more holistic way, as part of its mission to transform Austin into a "model healthy city."

In this episode, Dr. Octavio N. Martinez, Jr., executive director of the Hogg Foundation for Mental Health, and Dr. Clay Johnston, director of Dell Medical School, sit down for a conversation about how communities promote mental health and well-being that focuses on Austin but draws out key insights that have implications for all communities in Texas and beyond.

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The holidays are a stressful time for many. Adding to that, there are many in Texas who are also coping with Hurricane Harvey’s aftermath. On this episode licensed psychologist Edna Brinkley, Ph.D. is here with some tips on taking charge of our wellness during the season, and reconnecting with what matters to us.

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The holiday season is an appropriate time to step back from our usual focus on systems-level change and instead highlight how we as individuals can make things better for one another. As daunting as mental health and its related issues are, there is still plenty that each of us can do for the sake of our own wellness and that of others. John King is a certified peer specialist from Beaumont who believes that everyone can live a fulfilling and productive live, no matter their diagnosis. He joins us to talk about how individuals can promote mental health in their communities.

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How do communities create mental health and wellbeing? The answer varies from place to place. In this episode we chat with Richard Salcido, executive director of Family Services of El Paso. We use the city of El Paso as a jumping off point for a larger discussion about what is needed to strengthen the ability of communities to promote and protect the mental health of their members. El Paso's unique geography and demographics make it a vivid illustration of what a place-based approach to mental health would look like.

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This is our second interview with Dr. Luis Zayas, dean of the School of Social Work at The University of Texas at Austin. We are revisiting the issue of deportation threat for the children of the undocumented, only this time we're focusing on younger adults who are affected by the current state of limbo of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program. Dr. Zayas uses his insight into the phenomenom of deportation anxiety to gives us a new lens through which to see our current moment.

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We speak often about "recovery-oriented principles." But what are the hallmarks of a recovery-oriented community? What does it mean to belong to one?

Athena McClendon is a member of Austin Clubhouse. Clubhouses are membership organizations that provide a range of psychosocial supports to people who have been diagnosed with a mental health condition. For clubhouses and their members, recovery isn't just a personal aspiration but a communal ethos. In this episode, Athena gives a deeply personal account of the benefits of clubhouse membership, and the central role that Austin Clubhouse has played in her recovery journey.

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It may not always be obvious, but mental health is a highly contested concept, and one that has evolved considerably over the years. Are we on the cusp of the next phase in mental health's evolution, and what might this look? Ken Thompson, clinical associate professor of psychiatry at the University of Pittsburgh and member of the Hogg Foundation's National Advisory Council, has some strong feelings on the subject. In this episode, he traces the lineage of our current understanding of mental health, and where he believes it should go next. Sheila Savannah, director of the Oakland-based Prevention Institute, joins us for the second segment where she offers some timely reflections on the fusion between population health and community health.

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Children in the foster care system present some unique challenges for caregivers and service providers. Their needs are many and complex, and can overwhelm family members and caregivers. The Harris County Protective Services (HCPS)Integrated Health Care Clinic provides a model of how to effectively meet both the physical and behavioral health needs of this population, while also plugging in caregivers to the daunting array of services that are out there. Jacqueline McMillon of HCPS talks about how they make it all happen.

In the second segment, Kate Murphy of Texans Care for Children provides an update from the recent Texas legislative session, and what it all means for the child welfare system.

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“Invest now, or pay later.” That’s the reality of supporting the mental health of children and adolescents. Nowhere is this more dramatically apparent than in the school system. Untreated mental health conditions in students strongly correlate with increased risk of academic failure, discipline problems, dropping out, and involvement in the criminal justice system.

The Hogg Foundation now has two grant programs to support innovative approaches to this problem. Our two guests, Elizabeth Minne, a psychologist and executive director of Vida Clinic here in Austin, and Stephany Bryan, a program officer for the Hogg Foundation for Mental Health, are here to discuss both grant programs and how they aim to impact mental health in education.

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Society’s awareness of mental health seems to be at an all-time high. But in a media-saturated culture, there are lots of causes that vie for public awareness. Can "awareness" backfire? Why do some campaigns succeed, and others fail? Joining us for an in-depth look are two experts who work at the intersection of communications and public health. Dr. Mike Mackert is director of the Center for Health Communication at the Moody College of Communications at The University of Texas. Carrie Baron, MD is director of the Creativity for Resilience program and an assistant professor in psychiatry at UT Austin.

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What happens when someone with behavioral health conditions is released from jail? For many, the road to successful re-entry is laden with many traps: lack of support, lack of employment and, especially, the persistence of behavioral health disorders (addiction and mental illness). Peer support can make a huge difference. Learn about the new move toward peer support in the criminal justice system from two people whose own struggles now inform their work as peer supporters and advocates.

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In late February, an article ran on both Kaiser Health News and CNN heralding a new psychiatric diagnosis: “Post-Election Stress Disorder.” The Wall Street Journal had an article titled, “Take Back Your Brain From Social Media.” Science of Us, not to be outdone, offered “How to Follow All This Trump News Without Going Crazy.” There was another in the same publication: “You’re Not the Only One: America Just Broke a National Stress Record.” Joining us today are two University of Texas professors, Christopher McCarthy and Art Markman, who will offer some wisdom and advice on keeping calm and upholding civility in a time of political polarization.

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With the overhaul of Texas' child welfare system dominating headlines during the 2017 legislative session, we thought it would make sense to take a look back at our pilot episode, "Youth in Transition." LaQuinton Wagner, then a youth advocate for Texas Network of Youth Services (TNOYS), grounds the issue of child welfare in the experience of a young man who has recently "aged out" of the foster care system. While conversation around transition-age youth like LaQuinton tends to prioritize their emotional support needs, their need for the tools of effective self-advocacy are just as critical.

The interview with LaQuinton is followed by an update from Elizabeth Flint, a program coordinator with TNOYS.

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Individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD) experience the same mental health challenges as everyone else. But seeing through the "disguise" of disability to identify mental health conditions or trauma requires not just patience, but a sensitivity to the role that trauma plays in the lives of children and adults with IDD. Dr. Karyn Harvey, who has decades of experience working with adults with IDD, gives her perspective on what it would mean for both caregivers and the system as a whole to be more "trauma-informed."

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The Third Annual Black Student-Athlete Summit at The University of Texas provides no better time to revisit the issue of sports and mental health. Dr. Caroline Brackette is a professor of counseling psychology at Penfield College of Mercer University in Atlanta, GA, and Dr. Ryan Sutton is a postdoctoral fellow of the Hogg Foundation for Mental Health at UT Austin. These two scholars provide insight into how the culture of sport can both complicate and enhance the ability of black student-athletes to maintain their mental health.

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The 1966 shooting rampage by Charles Whitman at The University of Texas at Austin was not only a historic tragedy, but it was a watershed event in the history of the Hogg Foundation. In this episode we hear from two chroniclers of the shooting and its aftermath: Linda Swan-Adkins, fresh out of college and an employee of the foundation at the time the shooting took place, and Dr. William S. Bush, a professor of history at Texas A&M University.

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Psychosis is a complex phenomenon, one that we are just beginning to understand. All too often, individuals in the midst of a psychotic episode are faced with two choices: either no treatment at all, or coercive, medicalized approaches. What alternatives are available? What more could we be doing? In this episode, Dr. Neely Myers, an assistant professor of anthropology at Southern Methodist University, argues that we can take advantage of the fact that psychosis often first manifests in young adulthood, and that the right kind of early intervention can stave off the worst of the illness.

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Dr. Lovell Jones was the first African-American to be made a full professor at M.D. Anderson Cancer Center, one of the country's leading cancer treatment and research centers. As a molecular endocrinologist, he has contributed to our understanding of the biology of reproductive cancers. But it's as an outspoken advocate for healthcare equity that he's truly made his mark. In this episode, Dr. Jones discusses his life and career in science.

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The Hogg Foundation is deeply committed to humane, evidence-based approaches to working with persons experiencing mental health crises. Seclusion and restraints are too often used to control people in psychiatric settings. Along with being a failure in treatment, such interventions can cause trauma and injury to clients and staff.

Aaryce Hayes is a senior vice president of operations for The Mandt System®, which trains organizations in humane techniques for intervening in emergency situations. In this episode, we explore keys to reducing seclusion and restraint, and the related issue of awakening organizations and direct care staff to the importance of being trauma-informed.

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The tragic death of Sandra Bland in Texas has brought a swirl of attention to the issue of jail and mental health. Across the country, people are sitting in local and county lock-ups because they can't afford bail or are awaiting desperately needed psychiatric services. In this episode, we talk to Diana Claitor of the Texas Jail Project, who offers her perspective on the issue. Then, we get an eye-opening account from a woman in Texas whose boyfriend, a veteran with PTSD, has been sitting in a Collin County jail for more than 18 months.

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The child welfare system in Texas is under heightened scrutiny thanks to a recent federal court ruling which found the state's foster care system so inadequate as to be unconstitutional. In this episode, F. Scott McCown, clinical professor at The University of Texas School of Law and a member of the Hogg Foundation's National Advisory Council, talks about what must be done to turn this public attention into lasting reform.

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The Hogg Foundation for Mental Health is on a mission, not just to catalyze systemic reforms in mental health, but also to use our accumulated knowledge and platform to address some of the world's most vexing problems. In this episode, former Hogg executive director Dr. King Davis, in a wide-ranging discussion, talks about his monumental effort to digitize the archive of patient records of Central State Hospital, historically known as the Central Lunatic Asylum for Colored Insane. He also comments on the present moment, and the deep implications of the policy stagnation that has marked the Age of Obama.

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William S. Bush is a professor of history at Texas A&M University-San Antonio. His forthcoming book is "Circuit Riders for Mental Health: The Hogg Foundation and the Transformation of Mental Health in Texas." The book is a comprehensive, groundbreaking, and colorful look at the history of the Hogg Foundation's first few decades, and the defining role it played in how Texans talk about, think about, and advocate on mental health.

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Mental health apps are all the rage, and now with Thrive@UT, The University of Texas at Austin has gotten in on the game. In this episode of Into the Fold, Chris Brownson, Elana Bizer, and Katy Redd of UT Counseling Services discuss their hopes for the app, what went into its development, and its initial reception by students.

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"Forensic mental health" refers to services that are given to an individual on the orders of a judge or court as part of a legal proceeding. On this episode of Into the Fold, two experts on forensic mental health, Neil Gowensmith of the University of Denver’s Graduate School of Professional Psychology, and Larry Fitch of the University of Maryland Medical School, have an in-depth conversation on forensic mental health, how to do it better, and ways that the judicial and mental health systems can interface in a more cost-effective and humane way.

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There is a wealth of research on the relationship between school discipline and academic achievement among school age children and adolescents. Studies show persistent racial disparities in the type, frequency and harshness of discipline meted out to students, and these disparities in turn contribute to lower levels of achievement and even the "school to prison pipeline" for minority students.

Dr. Marilyn Armour, director of the Institute for Restorative Justice and Restorative Dialogue (IRJRD), is our guest for this episode of the podcast. IRJRD defines Restorative Discipline as "a philosophy and system-wide intervention that places relationships at the heart of the educational experience. The goal of Restorative Discipline is to change the school climate rather than merely respond to student behavior." Dr. Armour explains what this means, why Restorative Discipline is starting to catch on in Texas, and ways that the approach can be implemented.

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The Hogg Foundation for Mental Health has had a long and varied history as a Texas grantmaking foundation, and over the decades has presented a multifaceted personality to the public. Elizabeth Stauber, the foundation's new Archivist and Records Manager, is in charge of historic preservation at the Hogg Foundation. In this episode of Into the Fold, she discusses the evolution of her involvement with the foundation, and makes a case for the importance of archival standards.

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In recent months, a number of high-profile athletes, such as Brandon Marshall of the NFL, have opened up about their challenges and triumphs as people with lived mental health experience. With public interest in mental health issues at an all-time high, the culture of big-time sports is a promising site for a deeper conversation about the interrelationships among sports, masculinity, mental health, and the competitive pressures that athletes live under. Dr. Emmett Gill, professor of social work at the University of Texas at San Antonio, argues that the moment is ripe for athletes to take their rightful place as mental health advocates.

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How good is most psychological research? The field of psychology has long struggled with a reputation for not being a "real" science. Now, thanks to the Reproducibility Project, an ambitious attempt to replicate the findings of dozens of published studies, it seems to many that psychology research is at a crossroads. Mallory Kidwell, a project coordinator at Center for Open Science, explains why reproducibility matters, what steps the field can take to address the issue, and how the public should interpret the Reproducibility Project's shockingly low rate of successful replications.

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Dr. William Lawson is Associate Dean for Health Disparities at the Dell Medical School and Director of Community Health Programs and Professor at Huston-Tillotson where he leads the Sandra Joy Anderson Community Health and Wellness Center. This past spring, he was named the first director of the Sandra Joy Anderson Community Health and Wellness Center at Huston-Tillotson, a historically black university in East Austin. He and his team will be working at both Huston-Tillotson and UT Austin to build the Anderson Center into a hub for increasing access to physical and mental health care for underserved communities across Travis County, and for promoting research that will shed light on the causes of health disparities.

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Donna Jackson Nakazawa is the author of Childhood Disrupted: How Your Biography Becomes Your Biology, And How You Can Heal. In this episode of the podcast, Nakazawa summarizes the explosion research on the connections between adverse childhood experiences and later physical illness, the crucial role that trauma plays in the mind-body connection, and what the experiences of survivors teaches us about withstanding trauma—and triumphing over it.

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The Hogg Foundation has devoted considerable time and resources to understanding what is commonly referred to as the “social determinants of health” – i.e. the constellation of structural and environmental forces that play a huge role in shaping health outcomes at the individual level. An example, sadly, is the community upheaval caused by chronic violence. In this episode of Into the Fold, Kathleen O’Connor, a professor in the School of Nursing at the University of Texas at El Paso, discusses her research on the traumatizing effects of drug cartel-related violence along the U.S.-Mexico border, and the role that culturally competent mental health professionals have to play in mitigating the suffering.

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What is self-compassion? How does it differ from self-esteem? In this episode of Into the Fold, Dr. Kristen Neff, professor of psychology at The University of Texas at Austin, lays out the core principles of self-compassion, explains why it's important, and debunks some preconceived notions about self-compassion that makes the idea a difficult sell for some people. As Neff explains, with just a little bit of practice our ability to extend kindness to ourselves can weather even the most ego-threatening situations.

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Within African American communities, religious leaders are in a rare position to influence the lives of others, but that same vocation can be an alienating, even imprisoning, place for those who struggle with mental illness. Pastor A.J. Quinton of Diakonos Ministries in Austin, Texas opens up about his own journey as a pastor with lived experience of mental illness. "Pastor Q" speaks candidly about the double bind that faith community leaders confront as they try to balance their pastoral commitments with their own self-care. He also explains how faith leaders can effectively model recovery-oriented principles, both in their own persons and as conduits for others.

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It should come as no surprise that undocumented immigrants live stressful and chaotic lives. In particular, living under the constant threat of deportation and legal jeopardy exacts a psychological toll on their children. In this episode of Into the Fold, Dr. Luis Zayas, Dean of the School of Social Work and the Robert Lee Sutherland Chair in Mental Health and Social Policy at The University of Texas at Austin, discusses his own work on the mental health needs of children of the undocumented, and the effects of deportation anxiety on their sense of safety in the world.

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One of the biggest challenges for adolescent girls is developing an effective sense of self amid the sexualizing gaze of popular culture, their peers, and society at large. There is now evidence that the everyday process of contending with, and placating, this sexualizing gaze imposes cognitive costs that can negatively impact girls' performance on the kinds of mentally demanding tasks required to excel in school and the workplace. In this episode of Into the Fold, Dr. Rebecca Bigler, professor of psychology at The University of Texas, discusses her recent study, in which a sample of adolescent girls is asked to conduct a mock news broadcast, and its compelling finding that the preoccupation with being "hot" (i.e. conventionally attractive, feminine and sexually available) can come at the expense of job-related performance.

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Assessing how far we've come in our treatment of persons with mental illness demands that we understand where we've been. In this episode of Into the Fold, Dr. Patricia Galloway discusses the monumental effort to digitally preserve patient records from the segregation-era Central Lunatic Asylum for Colored Insane (now Central State Hospital). A key collaborator on the project, which is headed by former Hogg Foundation executive director Dr. King Davis, Galloway discusses the ongoing work to transform this trove of records into a publically accessible archive, the challenges of long term preservation, the key stakeholders in the project, and how the archive is deepening our understanding of the evolution of treatment standards for persons with serious mental illness. Galloway is Professor of Digital Archiving and Archival Enterprise in the School of Information at The University of Texas at Austin.

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What are the psychological effects of belonging to a stigmatized group? What challenges do these effects pose for both educators and students? In this episode of Into the Fold, Dr. Kevin Cokley, a member of the Hogg Foundation National Advisory Council, and Associate Professor of Counseling Psychology and African and African Diaspora Studies at The University of Texas at Austin, discusses the phenomenon of stereotype threat, its implications for African American self-esteem and educational achievement, and related issues.

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For professional women, authority might be a mixed blessing. This is one of the conclusions reached in a recent study by Dr. Tetyana Pudrovska, professor of sociology at The University of Texas at Austin. In this episode of Into the Fold, we sit down with Dr. Pudrovska to discuss the implications of her basic finding: that high-achieving women with decision-making responsibility not only experience higher rates of depression than their male counterparts, but also higher rates of depression than similar women without decision-making responsibility.

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Evaluation is a crucial yet often overlooked component of the grantmaking enterprise. In this episode of Into the Fold, Dr. Michele Guzmán of the Hogg Foundation for Mental Health discusses the vital role that evaluation plays in impactful grantmaking, how the funding mission is served by having an accurate scorecard of successes and failures, and how it can be beneficial for grantmakers to take a systemic rather than haphazard approach to evaluating their programs. She also reflects on her own tenure as the Hogg Foundation's Assistant Director of Research and Evaluation.

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With the recent election of Donald Trump as U.S. president, there is a very real chance that the Affordable Care Act will be gutted or repealed. Because of that, it is perhaps ironic that Daniel Dawes' book is entitled, "150 Years of Obamacare." The book provides an indispensable insider's point of view on the political challenges and compromises that went into President Obama's signature health care law, and the unsung figures who helped make it possible. With Obamacare now in jeopardy, Dawes' historical account becomes all the more important.

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What happens when members of affected populations go from being objects of study and intervention to co-investigators of the phenomena that impact their lives? What is the case for employing peers, people in recovery, and community members as collaborators in research? Community-Based Participatory Research (CBPR) can be an effective approach in working with underserved and communities of color in public health sectors. Dr. Chyrell Bellamy, an assistant professor in the Department of Psychiatry at Yale University, argues for the power of this method of research in the mental health arena.

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What is peer support? Is it simply a new profession or an attempt to make mental health treatment more efficient? Not hardly. As Chacku Mathai, CPRP and director of the NAMI Star Center, explains in this episode, peer support's ultimate purpose is systems transformation. Chacku shares lessons learned from his own recovery, and discusses the challenges and the opportunities for integrating peer support in throughout the health care delivery system.

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In this episode, Dr. Delida Sanchez, a professor in the Department of Educational Psychology at The University of Texas at Austin, discusses the link between depression and sexual risk behaviors among Latina adolescents. She also drops some wisdom about the challenges and complexities of cross-cultural understanding within the world of behavioral health.

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In this episode, we sit down with Marc Fagan, Psy.D., a national expert in youth and their transition to adulthood, especially those with mental health conditions. Fresh off delivering his keynote address at the August 2014 Texas Network of Youth Services (TNOYS) annual conference, Dr. Fagan shares his thoughts on the challenges faced by youth with mental health conditions as they emerge into adulthood.

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In this episode, we explore the challenges, pitfalls and rewards of being a parent or primary caregiver of a person with serious mental illness, as well as the potential for family members to act as change agents within the mental health system. The guest is Barbara Granger, Family Involvement Specialist for the Texas System of Care Initiative, who has devoted her life to advocating for services and supports that better serve families. She also cares for her adult daughter, who has severe emotional challenges.

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The issue of whether to disclose as a person with lived experience of mental illness is always a complex one. For this latest episode of Into the Fold, we talk to Willie Williams, co-coordinator of the Austin Area African American Behavioral Health Network, about his own experiences with "coming out," the challenges of living as an African American man with a mental health diagnosis, and things to consider when deciding whether or not to self-disclose.

Willie is a longtime resident of Austin, Texas, a city with a progressive reputation but a checkered racial history. His decades of experience in public service has given him uncommon insight into the challenges of sharing one's mental health history in a variety of settings. One important take-away: there is no universal "coming out" story, and issues of identity and cultural background can be just as germane as personal circumstance in determining the coming-out moment.

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For this pilot episode, we sat down with LaQuinton Wagner, a youth consultant for Texas Network of Youth Services (TNOYS), a grantee of the Hogg Foundation. LaQuinton opens up about his experiences in the foster care system, and how he found his voice as an advocate for youth in the years since he transitioned out of that system. He also speaks eloquently on the mental health challenges that "transition-age" youth frequently encounter, and on the systems change that needs to happen in order to address the problem.

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For this pilot episode, we sat down with LaQuinton Wagner, a youth consultant for Texas Network of Youth Services (TNOYS), a grantee of the Hogg Foundation. LaQuinton opens up about this experiences in the foster care system, and how he found his voice as an advocate for youth in the years since he transitioned out of that system. He also speaks eloquently on the mental health challenges that "transition-age" youth frequently encounter, and on the systems change that needs to happen in order to address the problem.

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With the momentous changes in the political landscape resulting from the presidential election, to say that 2017 could prove a pivotal year for mental health policy is an understatement. Join us as Alison Boleware, policy fellow at the Hogg Foundation, and Greg Hansch, public policy director for National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI), talk about what's at stake.

Into the Fold: Issues in Mental Health: Recent Episodes

Hogg Foundation for Mental Health