How Oklahoma First Lady Sarah Stitt Brought Early Childhood Mental Health Care to Her State

Top image: Oklahoma First Lady Sarah Stitt convened a meeting on family mental health and well-being at the Oklahoma Governor’s Mansion Pavilion in March. Pictured from left to right: Dr. Amy Emerson, Director of Hope Driven Parenting; Carrie Williams, Executive Director  of Oklahoma School Readiness; Oklahoma First Lady Sarah Stitt; Dr. Helen Egger and Rebecca Egger.

We need to demand more of our health care,” said Rebecca Egger, co-founder of Little Otter. “We need to demand more of our insurers; we need to demand more prevention. These are going to be the things that move the needle on the country’s youth mental health crisis. And we are not powerless in this fight.”

By engaging with lawmakers across the country, Rebecca and her co-founder and mother, Helen, are beginning to see change, including in places where, due to a lack of providers, the need for innovative mental health care is the greatest.

According to Oklahoma Children’s Hospital, one in five children in the state struggle to cope with the challenges of mental or behavioral issues like depression, anxiety, mood disorders, post-traumatic stress, and other serious conditions. Oklahoma First Lady Sarah Stitt is fighting to make sure these children have access to the care they need, including by partnering with Little Otter.

Stitt heard Helen Egger speak at The Kennedy Forum Alignment for Progress Conference and reached out to her afterward. The two bonded — first as professionals and then as two mothers connecting over their shared passion for children’s well-being. The first lady then invited Egger to speak at the Oklahoma Governor’s Mansion, where other powerful female leaders were assembled.

Now, because of the first lady’s advocacy, Little Otter is working with state officials to assess the emotional well-being of more than 14,000 preschoolers who are part of rural Head Start programs. Based on the assessments, a subset of children in need will be offered care through the Little Otter whole-family mental health care platform. Funding for the assessments and therapy will come through the Oklahoma Partnership for School Readiness (OPSR), which was created in 2003 to help Oklahoma families access the early care and education, family support, and health and mental health services they need to support their children during their most critical period of development from birth through age five.

“This partnership shows that when there is a person in government who is an advocate, we can make sure children have what they need,” said Helen. “But first, we have to empower parents, empower consumers, empower our leaders in government with the knowledge they need to make the case for change.”

This program is supported by Grant Number 90TP0094-01-00 from the Office of Early Childhood Development within the Administration for Children and Families, a division of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Neither the Administration for Children and Families nor any of its components operate, control, are responsible for, or necessarily endorse this program (including, without limitation, its content, technical infrastructure, and policies, and any services or tools provided). The opinions, findings, conclusions, and recommendations expressed are those of the Oklahoma Partnership for School Readiness and do not necessarily reflect the views of the Administration for Children and Families and the Office of Early Childhood Development.