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Meet our team

The Center for Youth Mental Health is a program whose mission is to advance our understanding of and treatments for youth with disabling anxiety and other mental health conditions. Supported by philanthropy, this program leverages the clinical and research faculty at Columbia University Irving Medical Center (CUIMC)/New York State Psychiatric Institute, Weill Cornell Medical Center, and NewYork-Presbyterian, regularly disseminating relevant, fundamental, and innovative educational resources and information to patients and their families as well as fellow healthcare professionals and educators.

Meet the CYMH team
Meet the CYMH team

Senior Faculty

Philip J. Wilner, MD, MBA
Philip J. Wilner, MD, MBA

Managing Director

Anne Marie Albano, PhD, ABPP
Anne Marie Albano, PhD, ABPP

Director

Shannon Bennett, PhD
Shannon Bennett, PhD

Associate Director

Francis S. Lee, MD, PhD
Francis S. Lee, MD, PhD

Research Co-Director

With top doctors from Columbia and Weill Cornell Universities
Rebecca Rendleman, MD, CM
Rebecca Rendleman, MD, CM

Vice Chair, Child & Adolescent Psychiatry, Weill Cornell Medicine

Charlie Shaffer, MD
Charlie Shaffer, MD

Co-Chair, Young Patrons Committee

Helen Blair Simpson, MD, PhD
Helen Blair Simpson, MD, PhD

Research Co-Director

Jeremy Veenstra-VanderWeele, MD
Jeremy Veenstra-VanderWeele, MD

Vice Chair, Child & Adolescent Psychiatry, Columbia University Irving Medical Center

Warren Y.K. Ng, MD, MPH
Warren Y.K. Ng, MD, MPH

Community Health Director

Carrie B. Kreiswirth
Carrie B. Kreiswirth

Program Director

In memoriam

The Center for Youth Mental Health honors the vision, values, and legacies of Herbert Pardes, MD, who died on April 30, 2024, and David Shaffer, MD, who died on October 15, 2023. Together, Drs. Pardes and Shaffer inspired us to devote our collective expertise and experience to the ever-changing mental health challenges and needs of young people. They are sorely missed, and their work remains at the forefront of our efforts to support the well-being of children, adolescents, and young adults.

Herbert Pardes, MD and David Shaffer, MD

Your support changes lives

Your donation will help young people and their families transform their lives, while helping us research and develop new treatments to reach even more youth affected by mental health issues.

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Your support changes lives

Get immediate help

SAMHSA helpline
SAMHSA’s National Helpline is a free, confidential, 24/7, 365-day-a-year mental health treatment referral.
800-662-HELP (4357)
Teen Link
Teen Link is a confidential and anonymous helpline for teens. Call or text between the hours of 6:00pm - 9:30pm. 866-833-6546
866-833-6546