Searching for Normal: The Story of a Girl Gone Too Soon

* Just over 20% of children (1 in 5) have had a seriously debilitating mental disorder, either currently or at some point during their life. (NIMH)

* In 2013, 8% of high school students had attempted suicide one or more times during the prior twelve months. (Center for Disease Control and Prevention)

* 70% of youth in state and local juvenile justice systems have a mental illness. (National Alliance for Mental Illness)

* Over 50% of students age fourteen or older who have a mental health condition and are served by special education drop out of school. (2006 US Department of Education)

* In 2013, an estimated 43.8 million adults age 18 or older (18.5 % of US adults) had suffered from mental illness in the past year. (NIMH)

* Public awareness about the prevalence and cost of mental illness is increasing due to the high suicide rate among veterans, celebrity suicides such as Robin Williams’ and due to numerous national efforts to address mental illness. (For example: the 2008 Mental Health Parity Act, President Obama’s 2013 National Conference on Mental Health, the 2013 BRAIN initiative designed to advance innovative neurotechnologies and to undertake basic mapping of the brain, and the National Association of Broadcasters’ 2013 launch of their OK2Talk campaign, aimed at educating and encouraging youth to dialogue about mental health.)