CNS "Are the Kids Alright? Navigating Child and Teen Mental Health Today" - Annual Power Hour

Hadassah Chicago-North Shore invites you to join us for an evening of honesty, exploration, and hope as we delve into the perils of child and teen mental health. Our program begins with Erasing the Distance a Chicago-based, non-profit arts organization that uses the power of performance to disarm stigma, educate, spark dialogue, and promote healing surrounding mental health.

Following the performance, we will hear from a distinguished panel of guests, moderated by Heather Bodie, Executive Artistic Director from Erasing the Distance that includes:

• a neurologist who started Speak Up after losing his son to suicide
• a school social worker on the frontlines of this epidemic
• a child psychologist who specializes in anxiety
• a young adult who struggled with mental health challenges, accompanied by his mother, an advocate in schools for other struggling children.

General Admission: 6:30; Program 7:00-8:30; Kosher Dessert Reception to follow

Erasing the Distance is a non-profit arts organization based in Chicago that uses the power of performance to disarm stigma, educate, spark dialogue, and promote healing surrounding mental health. Since 2005 the organization has been dedicated to creating a space for real people to share stories about their experiences navigating mental health. They collect, shape, and share true stories of people impacted by mental health issues; create frequent and accessible events dedicated to open conversation for public audiences; offer educational programming for meetings, conferences, events, and schools around the country; and teach a unique methodology to mental health advocates, and current/future clinicians to recognize and harness the power of personal narrative. To learn more go to https://www.erasingthedistance.org

Steve Arkin, MD

Neurologist and co-founder of SPEAKUP

Dr. Steve Arkin and his family have been touched personally by the issue of mental health. He and his wife, Dr. Karen Arkin, co-founded SPEAKUP, a Kansas City-based foundation offering programming on mental health awareness, education and suicide prevention, after their beloved son Jason died by suicide in 2015, just shy of his 21^st birthday.

Dr. Arkin is a board-certified neurology specialist at Miami Valley Hospital in Dayton, Ohio, and an assistant professor at Wright State University. From 1994-2019, he was a staff neurologist at St. Lukes Hospital in Kansas City, and an associate professor at the University of Missouri. He grew up in Chicago’s northern suburbs and earned his undergraduate degree at University of Illinois Champaign. He attended medical school at Rush University Medical College in Chicago, interned at Northwestern Memorial Hospital and did his Residency of Neurology at University of Iowa.

The Arkins also have a daughter, Jennifer, who is 26. They have been married for 29 years. Find out more about their foundation at: www.Speakup.us

Alison Chroman, M.S.W.

District Social Worker, Social-Emotional Learning Specialist

Alison Chroman has a Bachelor of Arts in Psychology from Michigan State University and a Masters in Social Work from Wayne State University. She started her career at Kaleidoscope, INC, in Chicago, where she worked as a case manager for teenagers in an independent living rogram. Three years later, she was hired as the school social worker at Central Junior High in Evergreen Park, and spent five years working ith middle school students in the community. That led to her current

position as the Social/Emotional Learning Specialist and District Social Worker in Deerfield School District 109, where she has been for 17 years. She serves six schools in total, encompassing students in Pre-K through 8th grade. Alison addresses the mental health of students,families and staff, which includes various forms of advocacy, planning and executing in order to support the social, emotional, and mental well-being of the district.

Jennifer C. Keller, PhD
Clinical Psychologist
Director, Center for Anxiety & OCD (CAO)

Dr. Jennifer Keller completed her doctoral internship at UCLA, a nationally acclaimed program for the evaluation and cognitive behavioral treatment of anxiety, OCD, and related disorders in children, adolescents, and adults. While at UCLA, Dr. Keller provided treatment at both the UCLA Childhood OCD, Anxiety, & Tic Disorders Program and the Pediatric OCD Intensive Outpatient Program, and received direct training and mentorship from leaders in the field of anxiety. Dr. Keller earned her Doctorate in Clinical Psychology at Northwestern University, where she worked at Lurie Children’s Hospital providing empirically supported treatments to children, adolescents, and young adults with anxiety, depressive, and behavioral disorders. Recognizing her passion for the treatment of anxiety across the lifespan, Dr. Keller completed her post-doctoral training at the Anxiety Treatment Center of Greater Chicago, before opening her own thriving practice, and subsequently joining forces with long-time colleagues and friends at the Center for Anxiety & OCD.

Dr. Keller has published in professional journals and has co-written book chapters on the subject of anxiety disorders in children and adolescents. She presents at national and regional conferences, community events, and graduate training programs. She is a member of the American Psychological Association (APA), Association for Behavioral and Cognitive Therapies (ABCT), Beyond OCD, and the Anxiety and Depression Association of America (ADAA).

Joe Gerber

Personal Story Panelist

Joe Gerber has defied the odds. As a little boy, he felt disconnected from the world and unable to find his way. Over the course of his childhood and pre-teen years, he was diagnosed with Asperger’s Syndrome, Bipolar Disorder, Obsessive Compulsive Disorder, Anxiety, and Depression. Fortunately, he received special education services and mental health treatments early on, as well as the support from friends and family.

After attending North Shore Academy, a therapeutic day school in Highland Park, and the Yellowstone Boys & Girls Ranch, a residential mental health treatment center in Billings, Montana, Joe successfully moved on to Deerfield High School, where he was awarded the Class of 2014 John F. Kennedy Medal of Honor for overcoming adversity and serving others. Joe then earned a bachelor’s degree from Northeastern Illinois University in Chicago for Communication and Media Studies, Human Resource Development, and Public Policy. Joe has continued his advocacy, most notably running for the Township High School District 113 Board of Education in 2019. Today he is a top-producing real estate broker with Engel & Volkers Chicago, and serves on many committees and boards. Joe currently lives independently in Evanston with his rescue dog Paxton.

Tracee Gerber

Education Specialist

While raising three children, including a son with special needs, Tracee Gerber felt drawn to Special Education. As she advocated and sought treatment and therapies for her son, a passion developed for helping young people reach their academic, social and emotional potential. Tracee followed that career path, working five years as a paraprofessional, eight years as a classroom teacher and case manager, and two years in a community-based transition program. Tracee has a diverse set of experiences that reinforce her work, which is deeply rooted in student outcomes. Tracee’s true strength lies in meeting each and every student where they are, and guiding them to success. Notable work experience for Tracee includes having taught at The Cove School, JCFS Therapeutic Day School, and Keshet.

Currently, Tracee is an Education Specialist for LearnWell Education, where she works with youth and young adults in the Child and Adolescent Partial Hospitalization Program (PHP). Tracee earned a bachelor's degree in Special Education (LBS-I) from Northeastern Illinois University, as well as a Middle Level Endorsement. Tracee lives in Evanston with her dog Ruby.

Event Chairs

Diane Cotton Caplan
Dena Sonenberg
Nancy Trudell

Host Committee (in formation*)

Risa Appelbaum
Tami Baba
Helen Bloch
Rachel Chernoff
Susan Coleman
Sandee Crasko
Mira Duncan
Lindsay Edelheit
Luisa Ellenbogen
Andrea Freier
Nina Friedman
Deb Gates
Sharon Gertz
Leslie Goldstein
Amy Haith
Nancy Himmelfarb
Tracy Hoyt
Risa Weiss Kallis
Abigail Karasick
Karen Kooperman
Ellen Kroot
Aimee Krupp
Leslie Landman
Marcia Lehman
Michelle Leon
Tracy Loewenthal
Sari London
Elana Margolis
Michelle Miller
Denise Nabat
Melissa Nguyen
Nataliya Polyakov
Kim Preston
Jennifer Rogers
Sherri Rosenfeld
Susan Rossiello
Greta Rothchild
Debbie Sandlow
Melissa Slater
Jodi Slovin
Haley Trudell
Elizabeth Ury
Anya Viner
Julie Weill
Ellen Zemel
Jeanette Garber Zemsky
Emily Zivin

*as of 5.31.22