Conversations that Matter: Bringing women together to engage on substantive issues, to learn, and to share different perspectives
Our next conversation will be focused on the Child and Adolescent Mental Health Crisis. We will be joined by Lisa Schwartz who will share exciting new plans from Northern Westchester Hospital aimed at enhancing the well-being of children and adolescents in our community and Dr. Emily Gifford, who works with families and children in her private practice and as the lower school Psychologist at a private school in Bedford. We'll learn about how NWH is expanding mental health services, increasing access to care, and collaborating with schools in northern Westchester to offer a spectrum of support and treatment options for young individuals.
We will also talk more generally about the mental health crisis facing our kids, why we’ve seen such an uptick in diagnosed mental health disorders and what we as parents and a community can do about it. This is meant to be an informal and interactive conversation in a safe and intimate setting. Please bring your questions!
Join us July 24th from 10-11:30am
453 Harris Rd, Bedford Hills
Event is free to attend, please RSVP below. Coffee and lite bites included!
About the Speakers
Emily Gifford received her Doctorate in Psychology from The George Washington University PsyD program in 2002. She is a New York State Licensed Psychologist with over 20 years of experience. Emily spent the first nine years of her career working in the foster care system at a residential treatment center in Westchester County. NY. It was there that she received advanced training in childhood anxiety and depression and where she specialized in treating trauma, both acute and chronic.
Emily has been practicing privately for the past 13 years, focusing on treating the whole child by working extensively with families and consulting with multidisciplinary professionals. She has received training in a number of therapeutic approaches as an independent practitioner. Most recently, Emily has been trained in SPACE out of Yale University and uses this approach in its purest form to reduce childhood anxiety as well as adaptively to reach a larger audience of parents. Emily brings a constructive and functional approach to her private practice meeting both child and family where they are at in order to optimize treatment and to best support everyone involved.
In addition to her practice, for the past six years Emily has worked part time as clinical support at a private school in Bedford, NY. As the lower school Psychologist she provides trainings for staff, workshops for parents and pushes into classrooms to support teachers and students on the ground level. Furthermore, she serves as a clinical supervisor for advanced doctoral students at CUNY and attends a professional supervision group monthly to discuss current and ongoing concerns in local clinical practice.
Lisa Schwartz is the founder and proprietor of Rainbeau Ridge Farm. For over a decade, she built a community around local, sustainable and nutritious food becoming an accomplished cheesemaker, farmer, recognized educator and author.
Actively engaged philanthropically in education, healthcare and environmental spaces, Lisa is a member of the Harvard Graduate School of Education Dean’s Advisory Group, served as co-chair on Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health’s Board of Dean’s Advisors, was former Chair of Seed Global Health, and is a Community Board member of Northern Westchester Hospital where she is co-chair of the Community Health Committee.
Lisa’s commitment to educational equity was furthered as a board member of Teach for China, dedicated to rural communities and as the founder of the Preschool Connection, which provided access to early childhood education.
Having lived in Tokyo and Beijing, Lisa currently resides in Bedford Hills, NY with husband Mark (AB, MPP, MBA, Harvard). They have two married children and four grandchildren.
Jenny Indig has over twenty years of experience both in the public and private sector in international affairs, counterterrorism, and intelligence analysis. She is the founder of Fern Hill Project, a community organization that supports local women business owners and entrepreneurs. She is currently an Executive Board Member of HIAS, the world’s oldest and largest Jewish refugee organization and Twist Out Cancer, an organization providing psychosocial support to individuals and families touched by cancer. She is also a Trustee at Rippowam Cisqua School in Bedford, NY. She has worked at several public policy think tanks most recently as a Senior Fellow at the Center on National Security at Fordham Law School. She served as Managing Director of Business Intelligence and Analysis at a private investigative firm, and as Team Leader and Senior Analyst with the New York City Police Department’s Intelligence Bureau for over seven years. Jenny holds a BA from Colgate University and a Masters in International Affairs from the Fletcher School at Tufts University.