For Immediate Release
Contact: Rob Grant, Communications Director
202.966.7300, Ext. 119
rgrant@aacap.org
Samantha Phillips, Communications Coordinator
202.966.7300, Ext. 154
sphillips@aacap.org
Marsha Levick, JD, Receives AACAP Catchers in the Rye Humanitarian Award
Washington, DC, October 17, 2017 - The American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry (AACAP) is pleased to announce Marsha Levick, JD, as the recipient of AACAP's 2017 Catchers in the Rye Humanitarian Award.
Ms. Levick personifies the intrinsic meaning of the word 'humanitarian,' with her outstanding contributions to the protection of youth in the juvenile justice system. She is chief counsel of the Juvenile Law Center, which she cofounded in Philadelphia in 1975. She has waged decades-long battles to end the harshest sentences for juvenile offenders.
Ms. Levick has been a national leader in aligning the law with recent scientific evidence proving children are different psychologically and developmentally from adults, as well as changing beliefs about the culpability of juvenile offenders. Ms. Levick's work is a model for advocacy on behalf of our most vulnerable youth.
AACAP's Catchers in the Rye Humanitarian Award was established in 1990 to honor those who have made a sustained and significant contribution to pediatric mental health through activities such as advocacy, education, entrepreneurship, philanthropy, research, and/or acts of bravery/kindness and is awarded by AACAP's Executive Committee.
AACAP's Catchers in the Rye Awards are our most prestigious awards and will be presented at AACAP's 64th Annual Meeting during the Karl Menninger, MD, Plenary on October 25, 2017, in Washington, DC.
For more information on this award, please contact Samantha Phillips, Communications Coordinator, at sphillips@aacap.org.
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Representing 9,200+ child and adolescent psychiatrists worldwide, the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry (AACAP) is the leading authority on children's mental health.
AACAP Members actively research, diagnose, and treat mental illnesses affecting children, adolescents, and their families. For more information, please visit www.aacap.org.