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Thank you for your interest in Mental Health America’s (MHA) Youth Policy Accelerator (YPA)! 

What is it?

The YPA is a youth leadership program that equips 10 outstanding young adults with the skills, relationships, and experience to advance federal youth peer support policy.

Who is it for?

YPA members are young adult leaders (18-25) with diverse backgrounds and identities interested in the intersection of policy change and youth peer support.

Members have a range of experience and expertise. For example, some YPA members may have exclusively worked in policy advocacy while others have led peer support programs or worked as peer specialists.

Participants must be authorized to work in the United States, and they must make a commitment to complete the entire program.

What do we do?

The YPA takes an intergenerational approach to social change, meaning we bring together leaders across generations to work together for mutual learning and growth.

The YPA has two parts.

  • Part I: 
    Foundations of Youth Peer Support and Policy Members explore the foundations of policymaking and youth peer support, learn from leading experts in the field, build community within the cohort, and co-create policy and research priorities.
  • Part II: Application and Learning Opportunities
    Members apply their skills with expert feedback. This includes opportunities to meet with legislators, conduct original policy research, lead a national youth peer support policy coalition, participate in presentations and panels, and more.

When and where does it happen?

The YPA is completely virtual and takes place from April to December 2025.

  • Part I: 
    Foundations of Youth Peer Support Policy (April to June) Weekly 90-minute live sessions with some opportunities for direct advocacy as needed.
  • Part II: 
    Real-World Practice and Growth (July to December) Twice-a-month 60-minute sessions with additional time for meetings, writing, and advocacy opportunities as needed.

Why should you apply?

  • Learn and apply skills: Gain valuable experience working on mental health policy, research, and communications. This includes public speaking, agenda setting, policy research, coalition leadership, and campaign creation.
  • Influence federal policy and advance youth peer support: Collaborate to develop policy priorities and strategy and meet directly with policymakers and advocates.
  • Grow your network: Build relationships with your cohort, policy experts, and MHA’s youth leaders network of over 150 program graduates with ongoing training and leadership opportunities.

Is this a paid opportunity?

Yes, YPA members receive a $3,000 stipend for their participation.

Please complete this form to submit your 2026 Youth Policy Accelerator application. Applications are due Sunday, February 23, 2025.

For questions or support completing the application, contact Jackie Menjivar, MHA's manager of peer and youth advocacy, at jmenjivar@mhanational.org.

Applicants will be notified about selection by March 16, 2025. 

Name
City and state
Which groups do you identify with?
This section is completely voluntary.

Written responses should be 250-500 words total, and videos should be no longer than 5 minutes.

  • Why youth peer support is important to you
  • Your experience in youth peer support programs (examples include youth-driven mental health education programs, peer support text lines or online communities, certified peer specialist roles, etc.)
  • Your experience in mental health policy advocacy
  • What you hope to gain from this program
  • How you will contribute to the experience of other YPA members


Applications can be submitted as videos, essays, or bulleted answers. Preferred means for video submissions are YouTube or Google Drive links.

Written responses should be 250-500 words, and videos should be about 3 to 5 minutes.

For video applications, paste the link here:

One file only.
75 MB limit.
Allowed types: gif, jpg, png, bmp, eps, tif, pict, psd, txt, rtf, html, odf, pdf, doc, docx, ppt, pptx, xls, xlsx, xml, avi, mov, mp3, ogg, wav, bz2, dmg, gz, jar, rar, sit, svg, tar, zip.
One file only.
75 MB limit.
Allowed types: gif, jpg, png, bmp, eps, tif, pict, psd, txt, rtf, html, odf, pdf, doc, docx, ppt, pptx, xls, xlsx, xml, avi, mov, mp3, ogg, wav, bz2, dmg, gz, jar, rar, sit, svg, tar, zip.
One file only.
75 MB limit.
Allowed types: gif, jpg, png, bmp, eps, tif, pict, psd, txt, rtf, html, odf, pdf, doc, docx, ppt, pptx, xls, xlsx, xml, avi, mov, mp3, ogg, wav, bz2, dmg, gz, jar, rar, sit, svg, tar, zip.
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