For the month of February, we are spotlighting Erin Kelly in Gregory, Michigan, who is currently serving as a first-year Michigan YMHC member in the Michigan State University Extension Program. Erin joined the YMHC because she had a personal goal to positively impact the people around her.

Erin is pursuing the community mental health navigator pathway and has earned her CPR certification. Additionally, she is working toward certifications with Flourish Agenda’s Healing Centered Engagement training and three certifications from Wayne State University’s Community Health Worker Academy, all focused-on youth mental and behavioral health. The Community Health Worker Academy seeks to promote health equity, population health, and community development by expanding and strengthening the workforce of Community Health Workers.

Erin earned her Bachelor of Arts in Sociology from Hope College, and while she deeply values the traditional education she’s received, she also looks forward to more hands-on learning within the mental health field. Erin stated,

“I have learned that education, in all of its many forms, is something that is needed in order to promote positive change. Change starts with education and mental health is a vast field that deserves my investment.”

‍By serving as a YMHC member, Erin hopes to develop skills for educating her community and furthering mental health awareness in her community on a larger scale, particularly among youth.