Johanna Bergan, M.O.V.E. National (YMN) is an advocate for youth with lived experience in the mental health system who is now working in the field of youth engagement to promote and encourage the inclusion of youth voice in policy change. Bergan has eight years of experience advocating for important changes in the mental health system to improve the care options and treatment availability for young adults with mental health challenges. Her voice has been heard on several national platforms including advising technical assistance and research and training centers that support and promote the value of youth voice. As the executive director for Youth M.O.V.E. National, Bergan assists chapters of the Youth M.O.V.E. network in creating and promoting successful youth-driven organizations working to unite the voices and causes of youth at the local, state, and national level. The YMN network Bergan currently supports is made up of 80+ chapters spanning 38 states and three tribes. Her duties include providing technical assistance and training to youth and adult audiences, with an ongoing emphasis on ensuring that culturally diverse youth populations are well represented in systems change work, including historically disadvantaged communities, young adults of color, LGBTQ, both rural and urban experiences, teen parents, runaway and homeless youth, and youth with multisystem involvement. This work covers a diverse array of expertise areas including youth engagement in systems change, policy, youth-adult partnerships, issues specific to transition-aged youth, youth leadership, youth-driven evaluation, and applying lived-experience as a resource to inform policy and systems change. In her role at YMN, Bergan provides direct technical assistance to federal grantees in the System of Care and Healthy Transitions grant programs, providing leadership and guidance to the evaluation protocols and process for the Children’s Mental Health Initiative, as well as developing products and training materials to support the effective and sustained work of grantees.
Selected Professional Positions
2012-2015 | Director of Member Services, Youth M.O.V.E. National
2015-present | Executive Director, Youth M.O.V.E National
Selected Project Experience
2015-present | Youth Advisor, Foster Care Stakeholder Advisory Board (SAB), Rutgers University, PCORI grant
2015-present | Member, Community of Practice on Professional Development for Youth Service Professionals, The National Collaborative on Workforce and Disability for Youth
2014-present | Advisor and Key Stakeholder, National Evaluation of CMHI Grantees, Westat
2011–2014 | Youth Advisor, Advisory Council on Women’s Services, Substance Abuse, and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA)
Selected Presentations, Training & Teaching
Bergan, J., Jones, N., & Tyler, D. (March 2016) The Critical Role of Peers in Psychosis Treatment. The National Council Conference. Las Vegas, Nev.
Masselli, B., & Bergan, J. (2015). A Guide for Youth Understanding Trauma. Youth M.O.V.E. National, Decorah, Iowa.
Bergan, J., Sevrn, J., and Vance, M. (August 2015) Leadership, Advocacy, and Youth Voice. NITT Health Transitions Grantee Meeting. Bethesda, Md.
Bergan, J., Davis, M., Manzer, T., and Slatton, L. (August 2015) There are Youth in the Office. What Do We Do? NITT Health Transitions Grantee Meeting. Bethesda, Md.
Masselli, B. and Bergan, J. (December 2014, January 2015, and February 2015). Building the Foundation for a Youth MOVEment of Peer Support Webinar Series. National Technical Assistance Center. Washington, D.C.
Koroloff, N. & Bergan, J. (July 2014). Developing and Supporting Youth Engagement from the Ground Up: Self to System. Georgetown Training Institutes. Washington, D.C.
Kendrick-Burk, L., Bergan, J., Long, J., Noelle, R., Soto, R., Richardson, R., & Waetzig, E. (2013). Youth Advocate to Advocate for Youth: The Next Transition. Research and Training Center for Pathways to Positive Futures. Portland, Ore.
Bergan, J., Long, J. (2013). Language in the Youth MOVEment: A Compilation of Terms. Youth M.O.V.E. National. Hattiesburg, Miss.