Olga Acosta Price, Ph.D., is director of the Center for Health and Health Care in Schools (CHHCS) at the George Washington University Milken Institute School of Public Health and professor in the Department of Prevention and Community Health at the University. She is a clinical psychologist with postdoctoral training in school mental health. In her current capacity as director of CHHCS, she advocates for the expansion of school-connected and community-based prevention and intervention approaches across the US, with a focus on strengthening systems to ensure quality education and health equity for vulnerable populations. In her prior role, Dr. Acosta Price became the founding director of the School Mental Health Program (SMHP) at the Department of Mental Health in Washington, DC and launched comprehensive school-based mental health programs in more than 30 public charter and DC public schools over six years. Dr. Acosta Price has dedicated herself to promoting prevention and early intervention programs that address the mental health needs of children and their families, and has developed, implemented and evaluated programs promoting mental health and resilience conducted in school and
community settings.
Dr. Acosta Price is currently the chair of the board of directors for the Coalition of Schools Educating Boys of Color (COSEBOC), a national advisory member for the Hispanic and Latino Behavioral Health Center of Excellence, among other advisory roles. She has written numerous articles and book chapters on children’s mental health and school-based services and has presented at national conferences and meetings on children’s health. Dr. Acosta Price has won numerous awards and recognitions throughout her career, including the 2018 Martin C. Ushkow Community Service Award from the American Academy of Pediatrics Council on School Health, the 2019 DC Champion award from the School Social Work Association of DC, and is the recipient of the 2021 Juanita Cunningham Evans Memorial Award, the highest honor in her field of school mental health. Dr. Acosta Price received her Masters and Ph.D. in clinical psychology from the State University of New York at Buffalo and her undergraduate degree in psychology from Vassar College.