Alexandria, VA – Mental Health America (MHA) has held its Annual Delegate Assembly and voted in four new national board members. MHA is overseen by a volunteer Board of Directors composed of mental health and business professionals, affiliate leaders, people with lived experience, and advocates for our mission. Meeting quarterly, the Board directs the strategic objectives and policy of the organization.
Below are brief biographies of the new members.
Rev. Dr. Sarah Lund
Rev. Dr. Sarah Lund is a pastor, author, and advocate. She is an ordained minister and has served as pastor to churches in Brooklyn, NY, Minneapolis, MN, and New Smyrna Beach, FL. Rev. Dr. Lund currently serves as Minister for Disabilities and Mental Health Justice on the national staff of the UCC and as the first woman senior pastor of historic First Congregational UCC of Indianapolis, IN. Rev. Dr. Lund serves on the Executive Committee of the Board of Directors for Pathways to Promise, a national interfaith mental health organization. She is the author of Blessed Are the Crazy: Breaking the Silence About Mental Illness, Family, and Church, sharing personal stories of growing up in a family with serious mental illness and Blessed Union: Breaking the Silence About Mental Illness and Marriage, sharing stories of her own marriage and the impact of mental illness. Rev. Dr. Lund is a wife, mother, and a person living in recovery from posttraumatic stress disorder.
Jen Madsen, MPH
Jen Madsen, MPH, is an executive and health policy strategist with more than two decades of experience in the nation’s capital. She is a principal in Health Innovation at MITRE, a not-for-profit company that works in the public interest. Jen’s clients span NIH, FDA, and the Centers for Medicaid and Medicare Services (CMS). Prior to MITRE, Jen was chief of staff to the CEO at Food Allergy Research and Education and advocated for people with life-threatening food allergies. Previously, Jen led advocacy efforts on access to genetic testing, as policy advisor at international law firm Arnold & Porter LLP; as senior director, leading a 10-person team at the College of American Pathologists; and as vice president at the American Clinical Laboratory Association, where she led critical negotiations with FDA. She also advised healthcare clients on the ACA as a principal at the Podesta Group, a bipartisan lobbying firm. An Atlanta native, she lives in Arlington, Virginia, with her husband and two dogs.
Art McCoy, PhD
Art McCoy, PhD, is a champion of children and a nationally recognized educator. He will retire this summer as the Superintendent of Jennings School District in Missouri. In December 2010, Dr. McCoy became the youngest and first African American Superintendent/CEO of Ferguson-Florissant School District at age 33, after serving as Assistant Superintendent for three years prior, and a leader for Harvard’s Pathways to Prosperity. Dr. McCoy founded SAGES, with the mission to “Sever the Achievement Gap in the Education of Students and Sever Attainment Gaps Existing in Society.” For his work, he has received numerous awards, including the Distinguished Alumni Awards from Harris-Stowe State University and the University of Missouri-St. Louis, St. Louis American’s Stellar Performer in Education and Salute to Excellence Award, Extraordinary African-American Trailblazer of St. Louis Award, Royal Vagabonds Foundation, Inc., Boy Scouts of America’s Silver Beaver Award, NAACP Inspiring St. Louisan Award of St. Louis County and St. Louis City, the National Bar Association Sankofa Award, 2017-2018 American Graduate Champion, 2018 Frankie Freeman Inspirational Awardee, and BJC St. Louis Children's Hospital Healthcare Advocate of the Year.
Clare Miller
Clare Miller joined Facebook in September 2017 as the Life@ Mental Health Program Manager for Facebook. She leads the company’s mental health strategy and programs as part of employee benefits, called Life@. Life@’s mission is to take care of Facebookers while their bringing the world closer together. Clare was previously the director of the Center for Workplace Mental Health at the American Psychiatric Association (APA). Before joining the APA, Clare was the manager of the Center for Prevention and Health Services at the National Business Group on Health, and prior to that, she was the director of public policy for Mental Health America. Clare has spoken publicly about her experience living with depression. She lives in the Bay Area of California with her partner Danielle and their daughter Camille.
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About Mental Health America
Mental Health America (MHA) is the nation’s leading community-based nonprofit dedicated to addressing the needs of those living with mental illness and promoting the overall mental health of all. MHA’s work is driven by its commitment to promote mental health as a critical part of overall wellness, including prevention services for all; early identification and intervention for those at risk; integrated care, services, and supports for those who need them; with recovery as the goal. Learn more at MHAnational.org.