Our Mission

To inspire recovery, resilience, and wellness through professional development in order to equip emerging leaders and strengthen the integrated healthcare workforce from a lived experience perspective.

Vision

The Academy was built from the collaborative efforts of peers and family members who receive behavioral health services, advocate for policies that impact mental health, and/or provide behavioral health services within Arizona’s integrated healthcare system. With a vision to increase access to evidence based, high quality peer support and family support services, the Academy is the only statewide entity invested in workforce development efforts with a primary focus on continuing education of credentialed peer and family support professionals.

Focus

The Academy increases access to evidence-based and continuing education opportunities through community based trainings that blend professional expertise with lived experience. Our focus is to build the skills necessary to drive impact across integrated care and social service systems, while supporting the development of wellness-centered resilient communities and empowering emerging leaders. This is done through the following:

1) offering professional development and evidenced-based learning to the integrated care workforce;

2) providing opportunities for industry professionals and communities to connect through statewide networking; and

3) working with social service delivery systems and healthcare provider organizations to ensure that the lived experience perspective is integrated and recognized as a vital component of care teams.