Campus & Community

Students sponsor mental health awareness

2 min read

The University community has seen a number of events and, recently, even weeklong sessions devoted to the issues of emotional and mental health. But Mental Health Awareness and Advocacy Week is a little different — it’s sponsored by a group made up entirely of students. The week of April 15-19 will feature a number of talks, roundtables, panels, and a film, all designed to educate the Harvard community about the misunderstandings surrounding mental health and illness. All of the events will take place in Emerson 305.

The Mental Health Awareness and Advocacy Group will kick off the week with a lecture by Provost Steven Hyman, who is the former director of the National Institute of Mental Health. The talk, titled “Stigma,” will take place on Monday, April 15, at 7 p.m.

Other events include a panel discussion on careers in mental health on April 16 at 7 p.m., co-sponsored by the Office of Career Services; a discussion on the changing place of medication in psychiatry on April 17, at 7 p.m.; and on Thursday, April 18, at 7 p.m., a screening of the Academy Award-winning film “Ordinary People” will be presented.

In addition, a display of student mental illness narratives can be seen all week long at the Science Center.