The team behind MHEA, founded at the University of Washington, Seattle, includes undergraduates interested in studying a variety of academic disciplines. A passion for mental health advocacy is what unites us.
MHEA acts as an organization that stresses awareness of mental health and support to individuals in India through a peer to student model. These volunteers will attend local high schools and demonstrate both the importance of mental health, as well as their support for people afflicted. This increase of awareness and support will decrease mental health issues in the community and help the community as a whole.
In our endeavor to equip adolescents with a familiarity and understanding of mental illness, MHEA provides a platform for peers to lead one another towards a state of acceptance and recognition.
A few of my friends suffered from depression throughout high school and the lack of resources for them to turn to aggravated the issue. They didn’t have anybody to talk to for fear of being labeled by people. I want to see that this is no longer an issue, and that people get the help they need. I hope we finally get to see the day when young students in high school can perform to their full potential and are not held back by mental health issues that they can get help with.
Sairandri Sathyanarayanan Founder
Mental health is an important issue to me, and I have seen the negative repercussions of people who have had undiagnosed mental health problems. I have experienced and still sometimes experience situational depression myself here at the University of Washington. I know firsthand about the unhealthy implications and how easy it is to spiral downwards. I hope to contribute to a program that will provide the knowledge of mental health issues to individuals who are going through stressful times so that they can improve for the future.
Skylar HallinanData Analyst
I have always been interested in working in a global setting. Particularly, I have been interested in the different ways of thinking between cultures. My interest in this, paired with multiple personal experiences dealing with mental illness, contribute to my desire to see change in our world. Young people are the leaders and thinkers of the future, so I deeply believe that targeting students can be a worthy and effective cause.
Chelsea WanCurriculum Developer
We aim to provide a platform for peers to interact and lead one another towards awareness about mental health issues and coping with them. This conversation is initiated with the aim to destigmatize mental health.
Our trained volunteers conduct a series of peer-led discussion workshops for students in classes 9 to 12. Through these workshops, students get opportunities to develop important skills that help them cope and support a friend having issues with mental health.
Participating students learn about depression, anxiety, stress and suicide and their symptoms, treatments and how to cope with them. They are also equipped with strategies to support a friend.
Volunteers are trained by the MHEA team to successfully conduct these workshops, facilitate conversations about mental health among students and guide them to mental health resources in their city.
Sairandri is a sophomore at the University of Washington who plans to study neurobiology and psychology. She is a Peer Health Educator and conducts workshops, panels and other programmes to promote mental health awareness, healthy sexuality and wellness on campus.
Chelsea is a sophomore at the University of Washington studying neurobiology and psychology. Currently, Chelsea is developing yeast biosensors with her synthetic biology research group. Her personal interactions with mental health and experience as an EMT led to her passion for mental health advocacy.
Aniruddh is a sophomore at UW who loves to hike (or sleep) when he is not stressing over school. He plans into major in bioengineering and currently works in a research lab that is using stem cells to help with the regeneration of the liver.
Skyler has a passion for bioengineering and applied math, which includes computational modeling and statistics. He is a rising sophomore at the University of Washington, and hopes to join an MD PhD program after his undergraduate studies.
Kartik is a sophomore at the University of Washington, aiming to major in Computer Science. He is extremely passionate about Computer Science as a subject, and loves to learn about new technology. His main goal is to apply technology to solve problems in society.
Saasha is a Sophomore at the University of Washington who plans to study Computer Science and Design.
Ed is a Sophomore majoring in physics at the University of Washington.
