The academic journey of Wendy Ingram took a pivotal turn during the 2013-2014 year at UC Berkeley, where four suicides affected her department in a short span. As a graduate student, Ingram noted that the tragedies prompted many colleagues in the Department of Molecular and Cell Biology to reveal their own mental health challenges. Ingram recounted, “Everyone was struggling, but none of us was talking to each other about it.”
In 2018, while at Johns Hopkins University, Ingram returned to UC Berkeley to develop interventions encouraging openness about mental health struggles and improve access to necessary help. She subsequently founded Dragonfly Mental Health, a nonprofit organization that extends support programs to universities globally. Ingram’s efforts catalyzed faculty and students to openly share struggles with conditions like anxiety and depression, like Richard Harland, a professor who acknowledged his lifelong battle with depression.
Matthew Welch, previously the head graduate student adviser, supported Ingram’s initiatives, inviting her to speak at departmental retreats. “It was really quite powerful, and you realize, ‘Oh, my god! This is actually making a difference,’” Welch noted. Similarly, Nobel laureate Randy Schekman shared personal stories of panic attacks that resonated with many.
The tragedy of a friend, Cris Alvaro, who succumbed to suicide in 2018, further galvanized Ingram. It led her to emphasize education and community support in addressing mental health. Dragonfly Mental Health developed a program featuring first-person interviews and structured discussions to foster departmental mental health conversations. The program has reached 38 countries and involved collaborations with educational and professional organizations.
Ingram addressed the silence around suicide with a program adapted from Workplace Suicide Prevention to better equip academic settings. “This is leading-edge stuff,” she commented, noting that many departments desire similar initiatives but lack the know-how.
As the need remains to de-stigmatize mental health and include conversations around it in academia, Ingram and colleagues like Stephen Hinshaw, a Berkeley Psychology professor, recognize that openness can change perceptions. Dragonfly’s programs aim to provide a platform for transforming mental health awareness and support in academic communities.
