Dr. Shern is the president and CEO of Mental Health America, and one of the nation's leading mental health experts. Prior to joining Mental Health America in 2006,
Dr. Shern served as dean of the Louis de la Parte Florida Mental Health Institute (FMHI) at the University of South Florida. He was also the founding director of the
National Center for the Study of Issues in Public Mental Health – a National Institute of Mental Health-funded services research center located in the New York State
Office of Mental Heath (OMH). In Colorado, Dr. Shern led the sponsored research program in the State mental health office, and evaluation and needs assessment
efforts in the Denver mental health system.
Dr. Shern has been the principal or co-principal investigator on research projects funded by the National Institute of Mental Health, the Substance Abuse & Mental
Health Services Administration, the Florida Agency for Health Care Administration, the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, and the National Alliance on Mental Illness,
among others. Having authored more than 100 publications, his research has included studies on the need for community services; the effects of differing organizational,
financing, and service delivery strategies on continuity of care and client outcome for adults with severe mental illnesses; and the use of alternative service
delivery strategies such as peer counseling and self-help on the outcomes of care.
He has held academic positions at the University of South Florida, State University of New York at Albany, New York University and the University of Colorado. He
received his Bachelors of Science, Masters, and PhD in psychology from the University of Colorado, Boulder.
