Mental Health Uplifted at Erikson’s 2024 Annual Luncheon

Erikson Institute, a graduate school in early childhood, held its annual benefit luncheon on October 22 in Chicago. Mental health was the theme of the event, which featured a keynote address from Thomas Insel, MD, a psychiatrist, neuroscientist, author, innovator and former director of the National Institute of Mental Health. Insel’s remarks were followed by a one-on-one discussion with award-winning journalist Brandis Friedman, anchor of WTTW’s Chicago Tonight broadcast. Ashley Judd, an actor and advocate for mental health awareness, was unable to attend as planned but provided a special video message to the crowd of more than 375 attendees.

The event opened with a mindfulness exercise provided by Darell Jones from Chill Ed™ Mindfulness Training that set the tone for mental wellness. Following a welcome from Erikson President Mariana Souto-Manning, PhD, attendees enjoyed a delicious lunch. The program kicked off with a moving video featuring the personal stories of Erikson trustees and event co-chairs, Peggy Lim and Sabrina Gracias, as well as insights from several Erikson experts on infant and early childhood mental health.

Gracias and Lim spoke together about the need for early, accessible and quality mental health services for children. Both women have become advocates for mental health—Lim through her work as an Erikson trustee and Gracias through a nonprofit she started to support youth mental health.

The Chicago Public Schools (CPS) was honored with Erikson’s 2024 Advocacy Award for its decades-long partnership with the school as a training ground for new teachers, and for CPS’s commitment to mental health. CPS recently launched a new suicide prevention program and expanded efforts to put behavioral health experts in every school. Accepting the award on behalf of CPS was Chief of Early Childhood Education, Leslie McKinily, who is an alum of Erikson’s Barbara Bowman Leadership Fellows program that equips leaders to enact systemic change in the early childhood field.

Souto-Manning spoke about the compelling need for mental health support in the early care and education field. “Our focus on mental wellness is informed by urgent needs documented in recent reports. U.S. Surgeon General Vivek Murthy’s advisory highlights the necessity of supporting the mental well-being of parents and caregivers—especially those in the early childhood workforce who often face high levels of stress and burnout,” she said.

Friedman interviewed Dr. Insel following his keynote. Dr. Insel spoke about our nation’s need to do more to treat mental illness effectively, especially for children and youth. He underscored the need to reach people who may not have access to services or may not want to engage in traditional mental health treatment.

To see photos from the event and watch a full event video, please visit our annual luncheon website page which will be updated in coming days.