PHOENIX - Arizonar -- Cummings Graduate Institute for Behavioral Health Studies (CGI) announces today its participation in the second-annual Mental Health Action Day held on Thursday, May 19 with more than 1,400 other leading companies, brands, nonprofits and cultural leaders globally during Mental Health Awareness Month.

As the global conversation around mental health continues - including the White House's new unity agenda strategy to address mental health in the United States - finding effective resources and knowing how to get help remains a challenge. Convened by MTV Entertainment Group, Mental Health Action Day was created with an open-source model that has effectively united and galvanized brands, organizational leaders, and cultural leaders to seamlessly integrate the message and spirit into their existing branding and voice.

This year's Mental Health Action Day theme, planned in partnership with TaskForce, is Connection as people of all ages continue to seek out ways to cope with loneliness stemming from the pandemic and turn to peer counseling to support their emotional wellbeing when struggling with isolation. We will encourage people to take their first steps towards mental health action — whether for themselves, for their loved ones or to advocate for systemic changes through a wide range of  tools. Additionally, this year MTV has piloted a new partnership model, Mental Health Action Champions, that empowers interested partners and provides them with the freedom to innovate, manage, and customize a sector-specific strategy powered by Mental Health Action Day.

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"We are thrilled to be an official partner for MTV's Second Annual Mental Health Action Day. The pandemic has shined a light on the mental health challenges Americans face each day," said Melissa McGurgan of Cummings Graduate Institute for Behavioral Health Studies. "According to the World Health Organization, during the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic, the global prevalence of depression and anxiety increased by 25%. It is inspiring to see a variety of organizations together to raise awareness on this issue and to help to take action in our communities to support one another."

"The last two years have brought to light mental health challenges and made it easier to talk about them – but there is still so much work to do to help people take actions to address them," said Erika Soto Lamb, Vice President of Social Impact Strategy at MTV Entertainment Group. "That's why the second Mental Health Action Day will focus on connection by providing leaders with resources to encourage and empower people to take action and those struggling with mental health and isolation with the tools they need to improve their emotional wellbeing."

Cummings Graduate Institute for Behavioral Health Studies and all Mental Health Action Day Partners will encourage people to take their first steps towards mental health action — whether for themselves, for their loved ones or to advocate for systemic changes. No cost resources and tools, such as an employer toolkit and platforms for hosting and organizing events, are available for organizations and groups to help support their audiences through a myriad of ways - from starting a meditation practice to learning how to support a friend to advocating for change.

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Additional participants and more information about how each partner will activate on May 19 will be forthcoming. More on Mental Health Action Day and a current list of partners can be found at www.MentalHealthActionDay.org

About Mental Health Action Day
Mental Health Action Day is an open-source movement of brands, organizations and cultural leaders to drive culture from mental health awareness to mental health action. The second Mental Health Action Day will take place on May 19, 2022 with a mission to encourage and empower people to take their first steps towards mental health action -- whether for themselves, for their loved ones or to advocate for systemic changes, because mental health is health. Learn more at www.MentalHealthActionDay.org

About Cummings Graduate Institute for Behavioral Health Studies
Cummings Graduate Institute for Behavioral Health Studies, a private, nonprofit, DEAC accredited institution, offers education and training in integrated behavioral healthcare through a virtual online campus. To learn more about Cummings Graduate Institute for Behavioral Health Studies, visit https://cgi.edu/.