Advocating for Youth Mental Health and Education with Dr. McKenna Parnes ’15

Academics

Undergraduate Season 5

Season 5 Capturing Creativity: Exploring Modern Photography with Jasper Soloff '17 The Heart of Libraries and Literature with Elizabeth Delinger ’86 Navigating Climate Solutions and Global Impact with Lindsay Iversen ’04 Advocating for Youth Mental Health and Education with Dr. McKenna Parnes ’15 Fueling Creative Energy in Media and Beyond with Mia Lardiere ’14 Translating College into Career Success with Leigh Heyman ’98

Academic Approach Areas of Study Global Education Combined Degree Programs Pre-Professional Programs Faculty Students & Faculty in Conversation Success After Sarah Lawrence

In this episode, Clinical Psychologist and Acting Assistant Professor at the University of Washington and Seattle Children’s Research Institute, Dr. McKenna Parnes ’15, spoke with students Daniella Calvo ’25, Engers Polanco ’25, Lauren Clark ’26, Nana-Ama Donkor ’26, Riley Arnold ’25, Samania Mamun ’27, and Skylar Smith ’25 about her journey from SLC to academia and research. She shared insights on her work with younger communities and her commitment to advocating for child and youth mental health. Throughout the conversation, Dr. Parnes emphasized the relationship-building aspect of the SLC education, which she credited with her success after graduation.

How would you describe the overall theme(s) of this conversation?

The overall theme of this conversation was very mission-oriented. McKenna encouraged people to have a “mission statement,” similar to an elevator pitch, to describe their work and goals. She also reflected on following a rather traditional path after graduation, going into a Master’s program and then completing her PhD.

Mission oriented conversation, both literally that she recommended writing a mission statement and that she had clear goals, did a masters and PhD.

What were the strengths of this conversation?

The conversation was a good balance of scripted and natural. From their questions, I could tell the group had done their research on their guest.

People did their research about her.

I would recommend this for anyone looking to go into psychology or anyone hoping to pursue a PhD. I think it provides a lot of good insight into the issues of doubt that arise while on this path and how to combat those.

Good for people interested in psychology.