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Mental Health Equity Grants

Since February 2023, the Mental Health Equity Grant program has provided $13,650 in seed money for 15 faculty, staff, and trainee-initiated projects that aim to foster and advance equity in clinical, research, and administrative activities within the UNC Department of Psychiatry. The following projects were funded in 2023 and 2024. 

  • Aimee Kresica, MSW, LCSW utilized the grant funds to purchase the cabinet unit and non-perishable items that were available via the Community Cabinet at UNC REACH Enhanced Primary Care (formerly UNC WakeBrook). This resource served over 140 individuals through 350 Cabinet visits and distributed over 2300 food, hygiene, and household items. 
  • Barbara James, MSW, LCSW utilized the grant funds to purchase bedding and winter clothing for UNC WakeBrook patients without housing. 
  • Madeline Farber, PhD utilized grant funds to contribute towards creating a gender-affirming environment for patients admitted to a UNC inpatient Psychiatry unit. 
  • Asiyah James, LCSW utilized grant funds to provide necessities required for survival and reintegration in society for individuals with severe mental illness returning to Wake County from incarceration (Formerly Incarcerated Transition [FIT] Wellness Program at UNC WakeBrook). 
  • Flavio Frohlich, PhD utilized grant funds to provide logistical reimbursement to Community Advisory Board members at The Carolina Center for Neurostimulation. With the reduction of barriers to engagement, the community members provided input that made the research more impactful. 
  • Crystal Schiller, PhD utilized grant funds to support a community feedback session designed to better understand the needs of potential research participants for an ongoing clinical trial assessing underlying mechanisms of estrogen treatment in perimenopausal anhedonia and psychosis. 
  • Jessica Kinard, PhD utilized grant funds to increase the accessibility of clinical recommendations to families served in the CIDD diagnostic clinics who have limited English proficiency by translating those recommendations into Spanish and by developing educational video/handouts in Spanish. 
  • Samantha Scott, LCSW utilized grant funds to offer free autism training from the TEACCH Autism Program to the mentors, tutors, and staff at Speak Life and Live. This training will help equip them to serve participants with autism spectrum disorder and provide minority families and local providers with connections to autism-specific resources. 
  • Erum Agha, PhD, MSW, LCSW is utilizing grant funds towards a meal and supplies for a workshop for medical students to enhance provider skills on cultural considerations in therapy. ​This workshop is part of the Taking Care of Our Own (TCOOO) program that aims to address medical students’ mental health needs.​ 
  • Eleana McMurry, MSW, LCSW utilized grant funds to jumpstart a food and self-care item pantry housed in the Carr STEP (Schizophrenia Treatment and Evaluation Program) clinic in the Tailored Care Management Program (TCM). This pantry will help to meet the basic health and wellness needs of individuals with severe mental illness and substance use disorders.​ 
  • Gloria Lima is utilizing grant funds to adapt a TEACCH virtual education series for Spanish-speaking parents of toddlers and preschool aged children that have been recently diagnosed with autism.​ This project will help to reach families in the Latine community, who live in rural areas and have limited access to information, services, and support.​ 
  • Rachel Taylor, MSW is utilizing grant funds to create a new bilingual group for UNC STEP and UNC REACH patients, titled “Mindfulness Through Heart and Hands (Corazones y Manos)”, to provide mindfulness, social, and wellness activities in a group setting.  
  • Shawn Baker is utilizing grant funds to purchase new salon supplies to provide free haircuts to people who are coming out of incarceration and receiving services from the North Carolina Formerly Incarcerated Transition (FIT) Program. 
  • Chris Fournier, MA, LPC is utilizing grant funds to offer free attendance to the annual conference for NC Community Mental Health Providers that will focus on Equity in Community Mental Health. 
  • Felice Reddy, PhD is utilizing grant funds to host Lunch and Learns on first episode psychosis and to develop relationships with the mental health clinical and training departments NC Central University (NCCU) for future training and practicum collaborations.