MENTAL HEALTH

Listed below is a comprehensive list of mental health initiatives, organized in a timeline format.

1. October 11, 2023: World Mental Health Day

   • Recognition and promotion of mental health awareness.

2. November 2023: Mental Health First Aid (MHFA) for Parents

   • Initiative to provide parents with skills to recognize signs of mental illness in their children.

3. December 10, 2023: First Listening Circle Success

   • Successful community gathering focusing on AAPI youth and mental health.

   • Hosted at Korea Academy of St. Louis with facilitation by Dr. Hemla Singaravelu.

   • Supported by St. Louis County Children's Service Fund.

4. May 17, 2023: Mental Health in the AAPI Community Panel Discussion

   • The Very Asian Foundation and the St. Louis County Public Library hosted this important panel discussion on AAPI youth and mental health. Youth members Emily Yang and Imran Khan joined Dr. Min Liu and other manelists from the Missouri Asian American Youth Foundation to discuss needs, challenges and resources in the community. Our executive team member Emily Chien spoke from her experience of battling hate and bullying too.

   • Michelle Li was the best conversation facilitator!

5. May 20, 2023: 2023 AAPI Mental Health Summit

   • The 2023 AAPI Mental Health Summit was a tremendous success. AACS is so thankful for the inspiring presenters:

     • Representative Emily Weber Emily Weber for Missouri

     • Dr. Changfu Chang of UCA WAVES with his documentary Silent War: Asian American Reckonings with Mental Health

     • Dr. Angeline Stanislaus, Chief Medical Officer of Missouri Department of Mental Health 

     • Dr. Min Liu of Southern Illinois University Edwardsville

     • Dr. Hemla Singaravelu of Webster University

   • AACS is also grateful for the wonderful students, parents and mental health professionals who served as panelists!! 

   • Yimin Zhu of Chinese Service Center in St. Louis and Chinese Education and Culture Center in St. Louis, as well as volunteers put in a lot of hard work!

   • This is a such a wonderful way to celebrate AAPI Heritage Month!

6. January 2024: Teen MHFA Training

   • Training sessions held on January 6, 13, and 20, aimed at equipping teens with mental health response skills.

7. January 28, 2024: Listening Circles at St Louis Chinese Language School

   • Alex Z and Grace D shared experiences to aid parents in understanding their children.

   • Supported by funding from STL County Children’s Service Fund

8. February 3, 2024: Listening Circle with Fo Guang Shan St. Louis Buddhist Center

   • Successful gathering engaging parents, elders, and community leaders.

   • Facilitated by Dr. Hemla Singaravelu and Dr. Min Liu.

   • Supported by Mental Health Advocates Ethan, Alex, and Manaswini, with funding from St. Louis County Children's Service Fund.

9. February 23, 2024: Voices Unveiled: AAPI Teens Speak on Mental Health Panel

   • Members of the Mental Health Advocates team will be presenting at this “Voices Unveiled: AAPI Teens Speak on Mental Health” panel for the Association for Multicultural Counseling and Development, through the invitation of Dr. Yang Ai, VP of AAPI Concerns of AMCD.  

   • This conversation is facilitated by Dr. Yang Ai and Dr. Min Liu

10. March 2023: Free Youth MHFA Training

    • Training conducted for youth by Trainers from PreventEd, Stacie and Joyce, and community partner Vitendo 4 Africa.

    • Supported by St. Louis Country Children’s Service Fund.

11. Recently, the Chinese Education and Culture Center in St. Louis hosted Family Night, in which Emily Yang, Cindy Liu, and Max Zeng brought stress relief games + toys to give out to youth. They also helped strengthen parent-child relationships through games of “How Well Do You Know Each Other?”, with questions like “does your parent believe in love at first sight?” and “which day if the week does your child find most stressful?” Funding support was received from the STL County Children’s Service Fund.