Amy Kennedy

Amy Kennedy is the Education Director of The Kennedy Forum where she pursues partnerships and collaborations that emphasize evidence-based research and programming to facilitate policy change in the areas of education and mental health.

With over 15 years of experience working in public schools, Amy has seen first-hand how a child’s mental health and mental health literacy impacts their ability to learn and grow—not only in the classroom, but in life. Her experiences as a teacher and as a mother of five propel her efforts and advocacy around social-emotional learning and mental wellness for children and adolescents.  Each day, Amy challenges herself and others to learn to address ACEs and other developmental roadblocks head-on through thoughtful interventions and skill-building.

Amy knows that by supporting educators and working with community partners to create robust mental health systems within our schools, it is possible to identify students’ needs and intervene early, while neuroplasticity is at its peak. Through strategies like social-emotional learning and integrated systems of care that meet students where they are, we have the power to improve educational, emotional, and health outcomes for all kids.

Amy serves on the boards of Mental Health America and Parity.org, which promotes gender parity at the highest levels of business. She is an advisory board member of Interaxon, a mental health technology company; the JED Foundation, which focuses on mental wellness and emotional preparedness for teens; and Brain Futures.

Amy holds a bachelor’s degree in Elementary Education from Pennsylvania State University and a master’s degree in Environmental Education from Nova Southeastern University. Amy and her husband, former Congressman Patrick J. Kennedy, live in southern New Jersey with their five children.

Marc Brackett, Ph.D.

Marc Brackett, Ph.D., is the founding director of the Yale Center for Emotional Intelligence and a professor in the Child Study Center, Yale School of Medicine at Yale University. His grant-funded research focuses on the role of emotions in learning, decision making, creativity, relationship quality, wellbeing, performance, and organizational climate; the measurement of emotional intelligence; and the influence of emotional intelligence training on key life outcomes. 

Marc has published over 150 scholarly articles, received numerous awards, and is featured regularly in popular media outlets such as The New York Times, Good Morning America, CBS Mornings, and the TODAY Show. He is also on the board of directors for the Collaborative for Academic, Social, and Emotional Learning (CASEL) the Mental Health Coalition Program Board. 

Marc is the lead developer of RULER, a systemic, evidence-based approach to social and emotional learning that has been adopted by over 3,000 public, charter, and independent pre-school through high schools across the United States and in other countries, including Australia, China, England, Italy, Mexico, and Spain. Research shows that RULER boosts academic performance, decreases bullying, enriches classroom climates, reduces teacher stress and burnout, and enhances teacher instructional practices.

Marc regularly consults with large companies on best practices for integrating the principles of emotional intelligence into training and product design. He is co-founder of Oji Life Lab, a corporate learning firm that develops innovative digital learning systems for emotional intelligence.

Marc speaks to tens of thousands of people each year and has been the keynote speaker at over 500 conferences around the world, including the White House, U.S. Departments of Education, Justice, and Defense, the Surgeon General’s office, the New York Times, Microsoft, Google, Facebook, and Twitter, as well as dozens of education conferences.

Marc is the author of Permission to Feel: Unlocking the Power of Emotions to Help our Kids, Ourselves, and our Society Thrive, published by Celadon (Macmillan), which has been translated into 20 languages.

Dr. Anisha Patel-Dunn

Dr. Anisha Patel-Dunn serves as Chief Medical Officer at LifeStance Health. Anisha has nearly 20 years of experience as a practicing psychiatrist and managing a large group practice, having co-founded Pacific Coast Psychiatric Associates, Inc. (PCPA) in 2006, now part of LifeStance Health, in San Francisco.

Anisha is responsible for overseeing all clinical services delivered through LifeStance ensuring that care quality meets and exceeds professional standards.

Anisha holds a Bachelor of Science in Biology from Emory University and received her medical degree from The College of Osteopathic Medicine of the Pacific at Western University of Health Sciences. She completed her adult psychiatry residency training at California Pacific Medical Center and is a Board-Certified Adult Psychiatrist.

Anisha enjoys spending time with her family, traveling, hiking, and scuba diving.

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