Dr. Kari Wolf oversees state’s new behavioral health training center Kari Wolf, MD , has never been afraid of making waves. The chair of SIU Medicine’s Department of Psychiatry was born in Evanston, Illinois, and raised in Iowa where she experienced her first opportunity to challenge the status quo and make a meaningful impact. At 12-years-old, Wolf fearlessly stood up for what she believed in when she chose, along with another student from rural Iowa, to file a federal lawsuit against the Iowa Girls High School Athletic Union, asserting that the state's 6-on-6 basketball rules violated the U

SIU leads efforts to cultivate connections, nurture opportunities for behavioral health access In 2017, Dr. Kari Wolf launched her campaign to begin growing Illinois’ behavioral health workforce. She met with state legislators to discuss a bill that would convene a task force to evaluate the impact of the depleted workforce. Because of her groundwork and those of other partners, House Resolution 711 was passed in 2018 and declared that “Illinois is suffering from a behavioral health care workforce emergency.” Soon after, a team of mental and behavioral health professionals across Illinois

SIU School of Medicine alumnus Dr. Kevin Simon (’15) was named Boston's first chief behavioral health officer in June 2022. Mayor Michelle Wu appointed Simon to the newly created post and tasked him with developing and implementing a comprehensive behavioral health agenda for the city's most vulnerable.

SIU School of Medicine alumnus Dr. Kevin Simon (’15) was named Boston's first chief behavioral health officer in June 2022. Mayor Michelle Wu appointed Simon to the newly created post and tasked him with developing and implementing a comprehensive behavioral health agenda for the city's most vulnerable.

SIU School of Medicine alumnus Dr. Kevin Simon (’15) was named Boston's first chief behavioral health officer in June 2022. Mayor Michelle Wu appointed Simon to the newly created post and tasked him with developing and implementing a comprehensive behavioral health agenda for the city's most vulnerable.

SIU School of Medicine alumnus Dr. Kevin Simon (’15) was named Boston's first chief behavioral health officer in June 2022. Mayor Michelle Wu appointed Simon to the newly created post and tasked him with developing and implementing a comprehensive behavioral health agenda for the city's most vulnerable.

SIU School of Medicine alumnus Dr. Kevin Simon (’15) was named Boston's first chief behavioral health officer in June 2022. Mayor Michelle Wu appointed Simon to the newly created post and tasked him with developing and implementing a comprehensive behavioral health agenda for the city's most vulnerable.

SIU School of Medicine alumnus Dr. Kevin Simon (’15) was named Boston's first chief behavioral health officer in June 2022. Mayor Michelle Wu appointed Simon to the newly created post and tasked him with developing and implementing a comprehensive behavioral health agenda for the city's most vulnerable.

Empowering individuals to be a part of the solution Recently the Behavioral Health Workforce Center (BHWC) began offering Mental Health First Aid training to employees as part of its mission to bring attention to and end the stigma of mental health and substance use challenges. This training teaches people how to identify, understand and respond when someone is experiencing these types of challenges and is facilitated by three Mental Health First Aid Certified Instructors from the BHWC: Dr. Taylor Blakeley, Training and Training Assistant Program Coordinator; Kyle Fontaine, Education and

RSP Travel Grant - Research Scholars Fund - SIU Foundation To facilitate medical students across all departments at SIU School of Medicine (SOM) to present their research efforts at external scientific and/or clinical symposia, the office of Associate Dean for Research has established an Research Scholar Fund through SIU Foundation. These funds can be used for reimbursement to help offset travel expenses incurred by the student to attend the meeting. Complete the form here . Eligibility: Full time medical students officially accepted and in good standing in the SOM Research Scholars Pathway