Andrew O'Meara, MS, Institute for Disaster Mental HealthProgram ManagerAndrew O’Meara, M.S., is the Program Manager for the Institute for Disaster Mental Health (IDMH). He holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Psychology from the State University of New York at Potsdam and a Master’s Degree in Clinical Mental Health Counseling from the State University of New York at New Paltz. Andrew has worked extensively with IDMH since 2019 advising students in the Disaster Studies Minor, planning the Annual IDMH Conference and assisting in programmatic development in response to acute and chronic disasters, including during the COVID-19 pandemic. Andrew has assisted in developing and delivering content to victim service providers, mental health clinicians and first responders, among others. Currently, Andrew is engaged in a 5-year grant from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) to support the mental health needs of children in Puerto Rico, and is collaborating locally with the NYS Office of Mental Health and NYS Division of Homeland Security and Emergency Services to help develop a state-wide team of disaster mental health responders. Andrew is the current instructor for the Practicum in Disaster Studies course at SUNY New Paltz, where he supervises up to 20 students per year conducting field work with local government and non-profit disaster response agencies. The Institute for Disaster Mental Health also focuses on international response capabilities, with Andrew serving as a consultant to the non-profit organization The UkrHelp Foundation to help support the mental health needs of children impacted by the current conflict in Ukraine. Andrew also enjoys outdoor activities such as hiking and camping, and can be found enjoying the beautiful scenery around the Hudson Valley with his wife and dogs when away from work.
Robin Jacobowitz, PhD, Institute for Disaster Mental HealthDirectorRobin Jacobowitz, PhD, is Director of the Institute for Disaster Mental Health (IDMH) at SUNY New Paltz. She is a researcher and public policy scholar whose work has focused on public education and more recently, on disaster mental health. At IDMH, she leads research and evaluation initiatives designed to strengthen disaster preparedness, improve systems of support, and translate evidence into effective policy and practice. Dr. Jacobowitz served as the principal investigator of the inaugural New York State First Responder Mental Health Needs Assessment, a large-scale study of the mental health challenges and needs of first responders across NYS. She also leads the multimodal research and evaluation component of the Disaster Mental Health Preparedness Training Program, a statewide initiative to build the capacity of victim service providers and other professionals to respond to mass violence and disaster-related trauma. Her broader research has examined the effectiveness of mental health awareness training in preparing participants to support young people following disasters, a countywide initiative addressing the opioid crisis, and New York State’s grades 3–8 testing program. Bridging her expertise in public education with her work in trauma and disaster mental health, Dr. Jacobowitz also leads a large-scale collaboration with a regional school district to strengthen mental health and resilience programming for students, faculty, and staff. Prior to IDMH, Dr. Jacobowitz worked with the Benjamin Center for Public Policy Initiatives at SUNY New Paltz and has held research positions at New York University’s Institute for Education and Social Policy and the University of Chicago’s Chapin Hall Center for Children. Her commitment to public education also includes 13 years of service on the Kingston City School District Board of Education, from 2011 to 2024. She holds an MEd in education policy from the Harvard Graduate School of Education and a PhD from New York University’s Robert F. Wagner Graduate School of Public Service.