MaPSAC’s Hadley speakers to address mental health

Brandi Christiansen and Amanda Hathcock. (Photos provided)

The 2021 Hadley Lecture, hosted by MaPSAC and scheduled for April 20, will present two speakers remarking on mental health in a time when a pandemic has changed patterns of work and home life to a “new normal.” The speakers, Brandi Christiansen and Amanda Hathcock, are experienced professionals.

The event will examine stresses, explore ways to maintain and bolster mental health, and promote discussion of mental health, organizers say. Christiansen is president and CEO of Mental Health America-Wabash Valley Region. Hathcock is an employee assistance counselor at Purdue’s Center for Healthy Living.

The event will be at noon-1 p.m. via Zoom. All University staff are welcome to attend with supervisor approval. Registration is required, and registrants will receive a confirmation email containing information about joining the meeting.

Questions can be submitted in advance to either Christiansen or Hathcock by email to APSAC-PD@purdue.edu. This discussion will be moderated to minimize interruptions during the event. 

The Richard A. Hadley MaPSAC Professional Development Series is named for a Purdue alumnus and past Purdue employee who was a founding member of APSAC, the predecessor of MaPSAC, the Management and Professional Staff Advisory Committee. Richard Hadley was a senior mechanical engineer at Purdue for almost 25 years before his death in 1993. The Hadley presentations are presented each spring and are intended to provide career enrichment for University staff members.

The series is supported by the Richard Hadley Memorial APSAC Fund for Staff Development. Gifts to that fund, including gifts on the Purdue Day of Giving, will help continue the series.

More about the speakers

Brandi Christiansen is a veteran of the United States Navy, an Appalachian Trail thru-hiker and a former semi-pro woman’s football player. She studied anthropology at the University of Iowa and has spent her professional career advocating to improve the lives of those affected by mental health challenges. Christiansen’s own experiences have shaped her drive to confront the discrimination embedded in social stigma and the institutionalized policies that reinforce the uninformed beliefs that mental illness is different from other diseases. Christiansen is a proud recipient of the Community Freedom Award for outstanding leadership and commitment to behavioral health from the Community Health Network, and the Women of Excellence Break Though Professional award from the Howard County Chamber of Commerce.

Amanda Hathcock is a limited licensed professional counselor (LLPC) and a national certified counselor (NCC). She attended Albion College and then Oakland University, graduating with a Master of Arts in community mental health. She began working with grant-funded public mental health providers and in the public school system in Michigan, often working with adolescents and young adults. She moved to Indiana and worked with IU Health Arnett as a behavioral health consultant before coming to CHL in 2018.

“I believe that each of us has the ability and responsibility to take the reins of our own life and find happiness (which positively influences those around us),” she says. “If you feel like you have fumbled the reins, dropped the reins or that life is running away with you despite your white-knuckled grip on the reins, then I am here to help. Using evidence-based therapy models, I will be respectful of your feelings and your situation and help you find your personal path to success.”

When not at CHL, Amanda enjoys time with loved ones – humans, livestock, and pets alike. She also enjoys putting her animal assisted therapy certification to good use.