Recovery through the Arts Since 1996

MHA MISSION STATEMENT Dedicated to Serving You

Our Mission is dedicated to promoting mental health and victory over mental illness and related challenges through education, prevention, advocacy, research and empowerment.

Our Goals Are

To present education programming that promotes mental health and reduces the stigma associated with mental illness.
To provide prevention programming that promotes skills for healthy living, both for those with diagnoses of mental illness and also for those who are not diagnosed or ill.
To actively advocate for persons with mental illness, their families and friends who care for them,

To offer information and opportunities for persons with illness to participate in and benefit from research, and
To facilitate opportunities for empowerment of persons with mental illnesses and related disorders in all aspects of life, including social and recreational activities, employment, self-expression, including diverse opportunities for “first-person” voice and in community integration.

Our History

Mental Health America of Southeast Florida convened in December of 1955 as the Mental Health Association of Broward County. Initiated by a dedicated group of community activists, the organization set as its goal the establishment of a Broward County affiliate to the (then) “National Association for Mental Health” that had already established chapters in Dade and Palm Beach Counties.

Mental Health America of Southeast Florida, formerly Mental Health Association of Broward County, was formally chartered in 1957. The 1957 CHARTER cites the founders’ mission to promote mental health through the efforts of an active and vested citizenry. It also defines goals/objectives in support of the mission. From the outset, MHA recognized the need and desirability to include a broad coalition of community members in its work. As a result, the organization mandated that its governing board consist of a diverse range of participants, that it not comprise a majority of professional clinicians and that it excludes those employed by State mental health institutions over which the organization might establish advocacy agendas. The 1957 document remains consistent with the organization’s current policies and promotes values that are sustained by the organization’s current activities.

A wall with paint splashing all over it and the word together written in white.

Affiliations

Mental Health America

Formerly the National Mental Health Association, Mental Health America celebrates a century of mental health advocacy and support for Americans with a mental illness. Over the past 100 years, MHA’s work has transformed how the country approaches mental health care, changed attitudes toward mental illness and built a legacy of change and progress.

Founded in 1909 by Clifford W. Beers, a young businessman who experienced firsthand the treatment of individuals with a mental illness, The National Committee for Mental Hygiene, as it was called in the early years, was the first association of its kind and the beginning of the organized mental health movement in America.

Today, Mental Health America of Southeast Florida is one of more than 300 affiliates that represent a growing movement of Americans who promote mental wellness for the health and well-being of the nation.

World Federation for Mental Health

The World Federation for Mental Health envisions a world in which mental health is a priority for all people. Public policies and programs reflect the crucial importance of mental health in the lives of individuals.

WFMH is an international membership organization founded in 1948 to advance, among all peoples and nations, the prevention of mental and emotional disorders, the proper treatment and care of those with such disorders, and the promotion of mental health. Mental Health America of Southeast Florida is an affiliate of the World Federation for Mental Health and works with them to collaborate with governments and non-governmental organizations to advance the cause of mental health services, research and policy advocacy worldwide.

National Institute of Mental Health

Outreach Partnership Program

The Outreach Partnership Program is a nationwide initiative of the National Institute of Mental Health’s (NIMH) Office of Constituency Relations and Public Liaison (OCRPL). The program works to increase the public’s access to science-based mental health information through partnerships with national and state nonprofit organizations. The program has a particular emphasis on reaching historically underserved populations.

The program also strives to enhance opportunities for the public to benefit from participation in research. These partnerships provide NIMH with the opportunity to engage community organizations in dialogue to better understand the needs, questions, and concerns of those intended to benefit from the research the Institute supports. Read more...

National Institutes of Health Clinical Trials

NIMH Clinical Trials