Join The Harkin Institute and U.S. Surgeon General Vivek Murthy for the 2024 Harkin on Wellness Symposium on Wednesday, April 3, 2024. The theme of this year’s Symposium is “Wellbeing in Schools”. The prevalence of mental health issues has increased dramatically in recent years, particularly in the wake of massive social disruption caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. This led the nation’s leading child health organizations and the U.S. Surgeon General to declare a national emergency in child and adolescent mental health. As the location where children spend the largest portion of their time outside of the home, we believe the K–12 school system can be a key vehicle for changes that can positively impact children’s wellbeing across the United States.
U.S. Surgeon General Vivek Murthy will be one of the event’s keynote speakers and will discuss the youth mental health crisis and how his office is addressing this challenge. The event will also bring together policymakers, education leaders, teachers, pediatricians, and practice innovators from around the country to address whole child wellbeing approaches, to review the scientifically supported best practices, and to consider the case for placing health and wellbeing squarely at the heart of our education system’s mission to prepare students for successful lives.
— Kathryn Kuckelman, Harkin Institute