February 27, 2025 Posted by AHW Endowment
On Feb. 20, 2025, nearly 100 academic leaders, community partners, and mental health professionals gathered at Thrive On King in Milwaukee for the Advancing Childhood Behavioral Health Summit (ACBH). The event, hosted by the Advancing a Healthier Wisconsin Endowment (AHW), marked a crucial step in addressing what health agencies nationwide and here in Wisconsin have declared a state of emergency: child behavioral health.
Building on a Landmark Commitment
The ACBH event builds on AHW's landmark commitment announced in June 2024 to invest $50 million across three key health initiatives, including childhood behavioral health. This focused investment comes at a critical time, as recent data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reveals alarming statistics: nearly 60% of teen girls have experienced persistent sadness or hopelessness, and 42% of high school students reported feeling so sad or hopeless that they stopped participating in regular activities.
These statistics underscore the urgency of the work ahead, as data from Wisconsin also shows significant mental and behavioral health challenges among youth that demand immediate action.
Setting the tone for this day of action-driven dialogue, AHW Director Jesse Ehrenfeld, MD, MPH, opened the summit by emphasizing that "Collaboration is one of our greatest strengths as a community."
The event featured a compelling keynote address by Benjamin Miller, PsyD, a nationally recognized expert in mental health policy who has shaped healthcare initiatives nationwide through his work with foundations, health systems, and government agencies.
In his presentation, Dr. Miller shed light on the complexities of accessing mental health care, describing it as navigating both a "labyrinth" and a "lottery." Beyond his keynote, Dr. Miller also facilitated much of the day's activities and discussions, guiding participants through the interactive group exercises.
Collaborative Activities Shape Future Direction
The morning session invited participants to explore the current landscape of childhood behavioral health in Wisconsin across three key areas: clinical settings, community-based settings, and non-traditional settings. In small groups, attendees shared their knowledge of existing programs and initiatives, creating a picture of resources currently available throughout the state. Using interactive polling technology, each group captured their findings and shared them with the full audience, allowing everyone to visualize the range of efforts already underway and identify potential gaps in services.
Following lunch, Dr. Ehrenfeld led a collaborative visioning exercise where tables worked together to illustrate their vision of Wisconsin without childhood mental health barriers. Participants creatively depicted transformed schools, communities, and healthcare systems. The groups shared their visions with the room, ranging from integrated wellness hubs to technology connecting rural families with specialists. This activity fostered meaningful conversation about innovative approaches to youth mental wellness across the state.
The afternoon continued with a session focusing on “The 6 Ps” – reconsidering policy, prevention, plan, platform, people, and place. This rotating station format helped participants share and build on each other’s ideas as they worked with different colleagues at each stop. Following the discussions, attendees conducted a “gallery walk” to review all contributions, using stickers to highlight and prioritize the most promising concepts. Dr. Miller concluded the exercise by synthesizing emerging themes and opportunities across all six dimensions, creating a comprehensive view of Wisconsin’s childhood behavioral health challenges and potential solutions.
Visualizing the Path Forward
As the day concluded, Dr. Ehrenfeld reinforced AHW’s dedication to further investigating the identified funding gaps and shaping targeted investments in childhood behavioral health. A highlight of the closing session was the unveiling of a live visual recording by graphic artist Sherrill Knezel of Meaningful Marks, who captured the day’s key themes and insights through dynamic illustration. Her visual synthesis offered attendees a powerful reminder of the discussions, challenges, and opportunities identified throughout the summit.
Strengthening Wisconsin's Response to Youth Mental Health
This gathering of Wisconsin leaders marked the beginning of a coordinated effort to transform how the state supports youth mental wellness. The event reinforced that addressing childhood behavioral health requires resources, careful coordination, evidence-based strategies, and a deep understanding of existing challenges and opportunities.
These efforts are deeply rooted in AHW's mission of maximizing health in Wisconsin. By providing funding and resources to researchers, organizations, and communities dedicated to improving health, AHW creates opportunities to learn from current and past efforts while collaborating with experienced professionals across the field.
By coming together in forums like this summit, attendees can help shape a vision for better mental health outcomes for the state's youngest and most vulnerable population.
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