Zachary Lepak: 2020 Graduate of MHS who will be attending Skidmore College in the Fall.
Zach will be creating a social media platform designed to reduce the stigma around mental illness and mental health issues. His social media platform will be based on Instagram with outreaches into Facebook and Google classroom streams. Zach will be conducting interviews with mental health professionals from the Barnabas Adolescent Outpatient center. They will be posted weekly on the Instagram page. There will be a google forum posted days before each interview to allow anyone to post questions to be answered during the interview. Another part of his plan is to put an abbreviated version of the Mental Health first aid course offered by the Essex County and Morris Mental Health Association link on the page. Stories of celebrities, athletes, and actors that have struggled with mental illness will be posted with the goal to show that mental illness does not discriminate. Zach's mentor is Bob Davison from the Mental Health Association of Essex, Morris, and Passaic.