Making Visible Unseen Disabilities, a History of Mental Health system from a Survivor
Ty Smith
Session Overview:
The Independent Living Community has a great philosophy when it comes to helping people with disabilities, one of our core beliefs is self determination. The Mental Health System on the other hand is one few system that strips those rights away! Lets learn about the history of how we got here and what we need to do to help our bothers and sisters still suffering in the heartless system.
Additional Materials for this Session:
- Accessible PDF version of the Participant Handout
- Accessible PDF Version of the PowerPoint Presentation
About Your Presenter:
Ty Smith (he/him)
Ty Smith is a Colorado native and long-time peer (person with a disability), advocate, specializing in the mental health system, quality of life measures, and trauma informed care. He created and implemented Youth Voice, a cross-disability coalition that focused on creating youth subject matter experts, providing training for effective policy and advocacy activities, and providing on-going supports to encourage community engagement. At age 36, Ty has thirteen years as a state and federal public health policymaker and eight years as a peer provider in the Colorado behavioral health system, and is Bachelor of Science Candidate, Administering Nonprofits for Youth. He is currently the Chair of Colorado Statewide Independent Living Council (CSILC) and Chair of the CSILC Policy Committee, a member of Securing Employment and Economic Keys to Stability (SEEKS) Chair of the Peer Subcommittee for SEEKS, member of Behavioral Health Planning and Advisory Council (BHPAC), member of Mental Health Disorders in the Criminal & Juvenile Justice System Task Force (MHDCJS), and member of Protection and Advocacy for Individuals with Mental Illness (PAIMI) and sits on numerous committees.