I am a clinical social work and public health leader with experiences spanning executive leadership, research, training, and direct clinical practice focused on health and behavioral health systems strengthening, trauma and resiliency, mental health epidemiology and community capacity building. After almost a decade as a full time frontline direct service provider in New York City, I took my skills into leadership at the national level aiming to uplift the voices of the 1,000’s of patients I served wherever I could. This included my role as the Vice President of Science, Equity, and Integration at ETR, a 40-year-old public health organization focused on identifying science-based solutions to achieving health and well-being for children, families, and communities. Prior to joining ETR, I was the Director of the Kennedy-Satcher Center for Mental Health Equity at the Morehouse School of Medicine. Under the mentorship and guidance of Dr. David Satcher (16th Surgeon General of the United States) and Former Congressman Patrick J. Kennedy (D-RI), I led national programs focused on advancing access to mental health policies and services for historically under-reached populations. I most notably gained recognition for my scientific and policy leadership on embedding equity into 9-8-8, the nation’s first crisis emergency response system, just before it went live in 2022. This effort contributed to the creation of many strategic initiatives led by HHS/SAMHSA and hundreds of implementing partners nation-wide. 

10 years ago, I wrote a draft work plan for my dream of creating a one-stop-shop where patients, clinicians, researchers, and policymakers could work together in one place with ease. I wanted to foster a space that bridged gaps between sectors, and one where patient and community voices were consistently centered. This dream has been realized here at Thriving For All. As Principal and Founder, I have leveraged all I’ve learned and experienced to create an environment that offers clinical, public health, and lived expertise at the intersection of direct services, research, and policy-making to advance stigma reduction and access to mental health care for all. I am skilled at convening interdisciplinary and diverse perspectives and navigate making complicated discussions about mental health and stigma accessible to broad audiences with ease. This is evidenced by the breadth of my collaboration with spheres of influence that include public service, academia, Hollywood, and professional sports. It is also demonstrated by my membership as a subject matter expert on multiple legislative task forces; as a state and federal advisor; as a Board Director; and as professor of mental health policy at her alma mater, New York University.

I completed both a Master of Public Health (MPH) and a Master of Social Work (MSW) from New York University, and received her Bachelor of Arts (BA) degree in International Affairs from George Washington University, where I was also a Division 1 NCAA scholarship athlete. I was privileged to be recognized in 2022 by National Minority Quality Forum (NMQF) as a 40 Under 40 Leader in Minority Health Awardee. As the daughter of South Asian immigrants, I have devoted my life’s work to championing health equity for populations least reached by systems of care, honoring the legacy of many of my own ancestors and family members who lived with physical and mental illness and could not get help.