On Tuesday the 23rd Ella, Grey, and I had the wonderful opportunity to attend NAMI NYS's Legislative Day. Similar to the Educational Conference we got to listen to many speakers such as Assemblyman Phil Steck and the Commissioner of the NYS Office of Mental Health Dr. Sullivan. It was great to hear from people who were really at the front lines of getting some really good and overdue policies passed and into law. In addition to making some small talk about NAMI@Emma with supporters of NAMI and government officials, we took part in a rally on the Capitol steps advocating for preserving and increasing the budget for housing programs for people living with mental illnesses. My favorite part of the day was speaking to my Assemblyperson, Patricia Fahy, advocating for the Mental Health Education in Schools Bill. This bill would revise the current New York State health class curriculum, which currently does not cover mental health at all. And really, can you have physical health without having mental health? Also, 50% of mental illnesses arise before age 17, and if students are not taught about the symptoms and signs of certain illnesses and where to go for help, it may take them many unnecessary years to figure out that they have an illness, if they do at all. Early treatment has also been shown to significantly improve the outcomes for those living with mental illnesses. To me, this bill really seemed like a no brainer, but the main opposition is coming form the NYS Teacher's Union. We also got to talk to Assemblywoman Fahy about NAMI@Emma, and expressed out hope that she would encourage Albany County school districts to set up chapters of their own NAMI clubs. We would like to start with Guilderland and Albany schools. This was such a great opportunity to get directly involved with the policy surrounding mental illness, and I know it was an invaluable learning experience for me!
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Mental illness is nothing to be ashamed of, but stigma and bias shame us all. -Bill Clinton
Katherine WallaceEmma Willard Class of 2017. Archives
May 2017
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