Center for Youth Advocacy and Well-Being
The goal of the Center for Youth Advocacy and Well-Being is to raise awareness for better mental health services in the community for young people and their families, and to coordinate delivery of those services to ensure the community’s youth have a chance to succeed.
Meet the Director
Altha J. Stewart, MD, Senior Associate Dean for Community Health Engagement at UT Health Science Center in Memphis is Associate Professor and Chief of Social/Community Psychiatry as well as Director, Center for Youth Advocacy and Well-Being at UTHSC. In 2018-19 she served as the 145th President of the American Psychiatric Association, the first African American elected to this position in the 175-year history of the organization. Prior to joining the faculty at UTHSC, she served as Executive Director of the Memphis/Shelby County System of Care program. A native of Memphis, Dr. Stewart worked for decades as CEO/Executive Director in large public mental health systems in Pennsylvania, New York, and Michigan. She received her medical degree from Temple University Medical School and completed her residency at what is now Drexel University. She has received honorary degrees from Regis College and Christian Brothers University in Memphis. She is past president of the Black Psychiatrists of America, Association of Women Psychiatrists and American Psychiatric Foundation. She is the recipient of the Black Psychiatrists of America Lifetime Achievement Award.