CONFERENCE TO TAKE PLACE ON FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 11, 2022
(DALLAS, TX); September 19, 2022 – Mental Health America of Greater Dallas (MHA-Greater Dallas) announces a one-day conference, Challenging the Myths of Mental Illness and Violence, on Friday, November 11, from 8:00 am to 4:00 pm at the Arts District Mansion in Dallas, Texas. The business-dress conference will focus on Media Bias, School Violence Solutions, Responsible Gun Ownership, Red Flag
Laws and other interventions, Academic Research, and Preventative Strategies like Mental Health America of Greater Dallas’ WHO© (We Help Ourselves) Program to address bullying and build resiliency in Pre-K through Adolescent children.
MHA-Greater Dallas felt it essential to focus its Annual November Conference on Mental Illness and Violence, especially given the significant discussion in American society about the involvement of people with acute mental conditions in mass gun violence incidents.
“It’s time to get real with the data, take the fear factor out of mental illness, present the facts about mental illness and violence without scare tactics,” said Bonnie Cook, Executive Director, MHA – Greater Dallas. Featured speakers are local, state, and national experts, including Dallas County District Attorney John Creuzot; The Meadows Institute’s B.J. Wagner, Senior Vice President of Health and Public Safety and Max Geron, Senior Director of Health and Public Safety and former Chief of Police, City of Rockwall, Texas; Parkland Health’s, Kristin Peterson, LCSW-S, RIGHT Care Social Work Manager, and Kurtis Young, MSSW, LCSW, Operations Administrator, Acute Psychiatric Services; RDR Investigations & Crisis Management’s Founder and principal, Douglas Deaton, formerly with the City of Plano and Highland Park Police Departments; UT Austin Department of Psychiatry & Behavioral Sciences’ Hani Talebi, Ph.D., Senior Vice President of Health Systems Integration; and from Mental Health America (MHA), Debbie F. Plotnick, MSS, MLSP, Executive Vice President for State and Federal Advocacy; Challenging the Myth of Mental Illness and Violence Conference tickets are available at www.mhadallas.org/events. For sponsorship opportunities, contact Pennie Beauchamp at 214-871-2420 X110 or pbeauchamp@mhadallas.org. For more information about mental illness and gun violence, see the attached MHA-Greater Dallas Policy Statement.
About Mental Health America of Greater Dallas (MHA-Greater Dallas):
Founded in 1947, MHA-Greater Dallas is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization working to promote mental wellness through community education and policy advocacy. MHA-Greater Dallas serves as a catalyst to identify, assess, and respond to mental health needs in the community. As a facilitator and coordinator for local mental health service providers, MHA-Greater Dallas operates through long-range strategic planning along with immediate responses to community crises as they arise. In addition to supplying information, education, and advocacy related to mental health issues, the organization also provides preventive programs designed to equip high-risk populations, including children, adolescents, the homeless, and the indigent, with information and skills to combat stress and adversity.