New Song Community Learning Center’s “Voices in My Head” Youth Mental Health App Wins 2024 Henrietta Lacks Memorial Award

The Johns Hopkins Urban Health Institute has presented the 2024 Henrietta Lacks Memorial Award to a collaboration by New Song Community Learning Center, Inc. (New Song) and Johns Hopkins SOURCE (SOURCE). The winning project, "Voices in My Head," is an interactive mental health guide created by young people for young people. The project aims to tackle the mental health issues that young individuals face in Baltimore. The $15,000 award was presented at the 2024 Henrietta Lacks Lecture on October 5 at Turner Auditorium.  

Watch the award winners share their inspiring journey and the impact of their collaborative project in this powerful video.  

Also, the city’s youth face a growing mental health crisis, stated Jayson Green, the New Song’s Executive Director, highlighting the difficulties faced by young people dealing with mental health challenges in Baltimore. He shared that some may feel compelled to turn to violence and that many lack the necessary support and outlets for expressing themselves. Recent reports have also shown an increase in suicide rates among 15- to 24-year-olds in 2021, as well as a rise in community violence during the pandemic according to the Kaiser Family Foundation (KFF).  

This unique collaboration began when New Song was selected as Service Scholars through SOURCE. The Service Scholar program provided financial support to help New Song establish the program framework and garner support from New Song Academy Scholars, families, and staff to begin addressing youth mental health.  

In the first phase of this project, Jaun "Brother Nance" Nance, an educator and a 2019 Bunting Fellow, worked with students and their families to create and publish the self-help book "Voices in My Head.” Centered around children's trauma, the book gave the students the opportunity to "write out" what's been "living in their head" and taught them how to become published authors. The students shared their personal journeys and reflections on their lives, with the hopes that the stories could help students, and their families learn and practice strategies for leading healthy lives with quality mental health.  Dr. Tyler Derreth, the Associate Director for SOURCE, and Green drew inspiration from the self-help book to expand the project's next phase, made possible by this award.  

In the next phase of the project, New Song and SOURCE aim to transform the book into an interactive mobile app called "Trauma to Triumph,” the 2.0 version of “Voices in My Head.” 

“You’ll get to have students who are frequently on there inviting other people to be a part of the conversation that they’ve started,” said Dr. Derreth. “And what they’re doing is saying, we want to tell our stories, and we want to hear yours.”  

This app will provide activities, journaling tools, and a peer support community, aiming to engage users and track their progress while addressing childhood mental health. The program, guided by adults and led by middle schoolers, will use technology to empower youth and promote healthier lives.   

“It really feels good to take part in making a change,” said Tajae Holloway, student and author of 'Voices in My Head.' “[The app] will give people a way to express themselves and a way to get their emotions out.”  

The awarded funds will be used to directly support program coordination, speaker and practitioner honorariums, and the development of educational resources that contribute to the sustainability of mental health programming at New Song Community Learning Center. 

The Henrietta Lacks Memorial Award, established in 2011, honors the incredible legacy of Henrietta Lacks, a former Turner Station resident and brave cancer patient at Johns Hopkins.  Her immortal cells have sparked countless scientific breakthroughs, making a lasting impact on both Baltimore and the world. Green highlights the importance of recognizing Henrietta’s remarkable contributions, stating, “We are born out of strength, power, and pain. And that speaks to Henrietta Lacks.”  

To learn more about our previous winners, click here.