Press Releases
Child Mind Institute Raises $6.8 Million at its 2018 Child Advocacy Award Dinner and Announces Expansion with the 2019 Opening of Harlem and San Francisco Bay Area Centers
Ashok Varadhan Was Honored With the 2018 Child Advocacy Award for His Commitment to Improving the Lives of Children with Mental Health and Learning Disorders
NEW YORK, NY – The Child Mind Institute held its 9th Annual Child Advocacy Award Dinner last night at Cipriani 42nd Street to celebrate individuals committed to helping children overcome mental health and learning disorders. More than $6.8 million was raised to support the Child Mind Institute’s innovative services and research, and to support its financial aid fund to help families in need get care.
Dr. Harold S. Koplewicz, the founding president and medical director of the Child Mind Institute, announced that the Child Mind Institute will open a new research center in Harlem this February and a new clinical center in the San Francisco Bay Area in September of 2019. The news was met with applause from the audience of almost 700 guests, which included Cardinal Timothy M. Dolan, Debra Messing and Dr. Ruth Westheimer.
The marquee award of the evening, the 2018 Child Advocacy Award, was presented to Ashok Varadhan, global co-head of the Securities Division at Goldman Sachs Group, Inc. On accepting his award Varadhan, remarked, “As a father of three, I’ve come to realize that every child deserves access to good mental health care. And the Child Mind Institute is a great combination of not only state of-the-art research but individual care. What they’re doing is making a difference for a constituency that needs it most.”
Harvard University professor Dr. John R. Weisz was recognized as the recipient of the 2019 Sarah Gund Prize for Research and Mentorship in Child Mental Health. Dr. Weisz’s research involves development and testing of interventions for youth mental health problems, as well as meta-analyses and systematic reviews characterizing and critiquing the science of youth mental health care.
ABC News’ George Stephanopoulos and author Ali Wentworth served as the emcees for the event. The Good Morning America anchor said, “I’m grateful that the experts at the Child Mind Institute have shared everything they know with our viewers on Good Morning America. I know that has made a difference in millions of lives. And that’s really the story of the Child Mind Institute, helping so many people so many different ways—individuals, families, community programs, schools. Harold and his whole organization send so much wisdom out into the world, help so many people, it’s made such a difference.”
Lydia Fenet, author of the upcoming book, The Most Powerful Woman in the Room is You, served as the event auctioneer.
