Interdepartmental Serious Mental Illness Coordinating Committee Roster

The ISMICC is composed of senior leaders from 10 federal agencies including HHS, the Departments of Justice, Labor, Veterans Affairs, Defense, Housing and Urban Development, Education, and the Social Security Administration along with 14 non-federal public members.

The ISMICC reports to the Secretary of HHS or their designee. The Assistant Secretary for Mental Health and Substance Use chairs the ISMICC, with management and support services provided by SAMHSA.

ISMICC Federal Members

Federal Membership: The ISMICC will be composed of the following federal members or their designees:

  • The Secretary
  • The Assistant Secretary for Mental Health and Substance Use
  • The Attorney General
  • The Secretary of the Department of Veterans Affairs
  • The Secretary of the Department of Defense
  • The Secretary of the Department of Housing and Urban Development
  • The Secretary of the Department of Education
  • The Secretary of the Department of Labor
  • The Administrator of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services
  • The Commissioner of the Social Security Administration

ISMICC Non-Federal Members

The ISMICC’s non-federal membership represents mental health researchers, providers, patients, families, judges, law enforcement officers, and other professionals who work with people living with SMI. The following national experts were selected in August 2017 to serve three-year terms:

  • Trinidad de Jesus Arguello, Ph.D., LCSW, PMHRN-BC, Director, Compostela Community and Family Cultural Institute
  • Yasmine Brown, M.S., Chief Executive Officer, Hope Restored Suicide Prevention Project, LLC
  • Ron Bruno, Founding Board Member and Second Vice President, CIT International
  • David Covington, LPC, MBA, CEO/President, RI International
  • Pete Earley, Author
  • Brian Hepburn, M.D., Executive Director, National Association of State Mental Health Program Directors
  • Jennifer Higgins, Ph.D., CCRP, Owner, CommonWealth GrantWorks
  • Johanna Kandel, B.A., Founder and Chief Executive Officer, The Alliance for Eating Disorders Awareness
  • Steven Leifman, J.D., Associate Administrative Judge, Miami-Dade County Court, Eleventh Judicial Circuit of Florida
  • Adrienne Lightfoot, Peer Program Coordinator, DC Department of Behavioral Health
  • Amanda Lipp, B.S., Director and Filmmaker, Lipp Studios
  • Winola Sprague, DNP, CNS-BC, Medical Director, Children’s Advantage
  • Rhathelia Stroud, J.D., Presiding Judge, DeKalb County Magistrate Court
  • Katherine Warburton, D.O., Medical Director and Deputy Director of Clinical Operations, California Department of State Hospitals

Last Updated: 06/14/2022