Melinda Hasbrouck lives in Washington, DC and self-identifies as a current consumer of mental health services, who has recovered from serious mental illnesses, including Bipolar Disorder, Suicidality, and Bulimia. Melinda developed a passion for mental/behavioral health advocacy from her own experiences recovering from her serious mental illnesses utilizing the DC mental/behavioral health system of care and her law school’s counseling center. Melinda was raised in Capitol Heights, MD by her Native Washingtonian parents. She has lived in Southeast Washington for over 15 years.

Melinda is the Executive Director of Our Door Community Wellness Center, a partnership of DC Department of Behavioral Health (DBH) and Green Door Behavioral Health. She leads the development of the Center’s programs. Melinda previously worked as a Special Projects Coordinator for DBH’s Office of Consumer and Family Affairs. She has a Master of Public Health (Health Policy) from The George Washington University (GWU) Milken Institute School of PublicHealth. During her tenure at the Milken Institute, she was a Graduate Research Assistant for Dean Kimberly Horn to help implement the “Switching to Progressively Reduced Nicotine Content Cigarettes in Smokers with Lower Socioeconomic Status” research trial. Melinda was selected as the student commencement speaker and highlighted her public health story of mental health recovery. She continues to expand her practice in public health policy and advocacy through multiple collaborations linked to GWU, the Milken Institute and the Rodham Institute.

Melinda has a law degree from William & Mary School of Law and had the academic honor of attending as a Graduate Research Fellow. She completed her undergraduate studies at Towson University, where she was named Outstanding Woman of the Year. Melinda is also a DC Department of Behavioral Health Certified Peer Specialist and is on the Leadership Team of the DBH Peer Specialist Certification Committee.

Melinda is active throughout the community in various activities that promote mental/behavioral health prevention, recovery and resiliency. She believes that nonclinical support services in the community are as essential to a person’s recovery and resiliency as clinical services. She continues to be an active volunteer, speaker and advocate for various organizations. She has coordinated and spoken/presented at conferences, local and nationwide, promoting the vision that recovery and resiliency is possible. In efforts to build the communities she is from and lives in, Melinda, in her role as Our Door’s Executive Director, provides technical assistance to many organizations, groups and individuals who need her specialized skills and access to a large network of various stakeholders.