Irsay Holds Second Annual Research Symposium

The Irsay Institute held its second annual Research Symposium on February 20, a daylong event for faculty and student researchers in the socio-medical sciences to learn about the work of Irsay colleagues and collaborators near and far, and for faculty, staff, and students to network.

Brea Perry giving her presentation on stage

Irsay Director Bernice Pescosolido kicked off the gathering with introductory remarks and previewed three Irsay research reports slated for publication in the coming months: Mental Health & Stigma in Indiana High Schools (based on the Indiana Youth Survey), two reports on Stigma in America (based on the US National Stigma Study and the US Substance Abuse Stigma Study), and a Proposal to Establish Indiana University as a National Center of College Mental Health Empowerment through UBC2M (the U Bring Change 2 Mind initiative).

Sara Evans-Lacko (at the time an Irsay Scientific Advisory Board Member and Associate Professorial Research Fellow, Care Policy and Evaluation Centre, London School of Economics; now a Senior Research Scientist at the Irsay) presented “Breaking the Structural Barriers That Keep Mental Health Care Out of Reach,” featuring extensive research carried out in Latin America and Africa.

Jessica Brantez presenting her talk

Irsay Co-Director Brea Perry spoke on “Drawing boundaries in the workplace: Social exclusion of employees with active addiction and in recovery,” detailing the interpersonal stigma experienced at work by people with substance use disorders.

Anna Mueller presented “Schools and the Challenge of Suicide Prevention,” based on the Connect to Care in Schools research study, and previewed some of the findings released that very day in the study’s Indiana Research Report.

Jessica Brantez (incoming Irsay Fellow for 2026–27, IUB Sociology) spoke on “Stigma and the Mental Health Consequences of Memory Loss: How Cognitive Labels Drive Depression,” looking at how the various labels of cognitive decline — clinical, self-perceived, and friends/family — are related to the objective symptoms of cognitive impairment.

Drew Pickett inotroducing the CoDesign Commons to symposium attendees

Irsay Fellow Aijia Yuan (Kelley’s Data Science and AI Lab) presented “AI-Enabled Mental Health Analytics: Disorder Identification and Therapeutic Support,” discussing the cutting-edge intersection of mental health care and AI Large-Language Models.

Drew Pickett (Core Faculty, Aging & Biosocial Mechanisms of Health; SPH, Health & Wellness Design) closed the talks with “CoDesign Commons: A Community Innovation Studio,” detailing the establishment of a collaborative space for researchers, community organizations, and older adults to work together to solve problems to address aging-related challenges in the community.

Roberto Ortiz presenting his team's conclusions to a small group during the poster session

Alongside the talks, a gallery of posters showcased additional research. Irsay Fellows Ekaterina Baldina, Whitney Cordoba-Grueso, Lady Ikeya Loveday, Derek Richardson, Rachel Seymour, and Brandy Smith all contributed posters, as did the Connect to Care in Schools Study team, detailing analysis by Anna Mueller and Roberto Ortiz (incoming Irsay Fellow for 2026–27, IUB Sociology). The posters were rounded out by contributions from Analiece Emigh & Charles Mitts from IU’s chapter of U Bring Change to Mind and Irsay undergraduate researchers Hannah Gaby & Chelsea Lott, Deep Patel & Taylor Hasbrook.

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