photo by: Josie Heimsoth/Journal-World

Bert Nash Community Mental Health Center, is pictured Tuesday, February 25, 2025.

At 75 years old, the Bert Nash Community Mental Health Center is past the youthful stage of its existence, but don’t accuse it of failing to be new.

The nonprofit organization is working on two of its larger projects in recent memory — one dedicated to providing urgent mental health care to children, and another that provides supportive housing to Douglas County residents in need.

Both projects fit will with the overall vision of the center’s late namesake, leaders said they are prepare to celebrate the 75th anniversary of the center with special events that begin this week and run into next month.

Seventy five years after its founding, the Bert Nash Community Mental Health Center continues the legacy of its namesake and focuses on expanding access to child mental health care and supportive housing for vulnerable populations in Douglas County.

Three years after Bert Nash the man — who was a University of Kansas educational psychologist — died in 1947, community leaders founded the Bert Nash Mental Health Clinic as a “living memorial” to his work. Nash was widely consider a leader in the field of child welfare. After he died at the age of 48 during a public presentation where he suffered a cerebral hemorrhage, Nash was praised by Karl Menninger — a former professor and the founder of one of the most renowned mental health clinics in America — called Nash the “most distinguished student” of his teaching career.

Nash’s name is on track to get attached to at least one more major effort to improve the welfare of children. The Bert Nash Center has been working to develop a Youth Recovery Center within the next three years, which will provide short-term mental health and substance use stabilization for children.

The facility is expected to address a critical need in Douglas County, which is offering crisis care and hospitalization services to serve youth ages 6-17. Bert Nash CEO Patrick Schmitz said staff is anticipating the center will open in late 2026 and early 2027.

“Our kids in crisis is not a secret,” Emily Farley, chief advancement officer of Bert Nash, said. ” … We are going to create an urgent care, psychiatric urgent facility for children that can stay one to five days, truly being able to stabilize a child.”

photo by: Bert Nash Community Mental Health Center

Dr. Bert Nash

Additionally, another project Bert Nash is prioritizing moving forward is a new 24-unit supportive housing complex to help people who struggle with both homelessness and behavioral health disorders. What Bert Nash is planning to build is a combination of an apartment complex and an office that would host staff members like case managers and outreach coordinators. The office space would be on the bottom floor of the 43,000-square-foot facility, with the two dozen single-room units sitting on top of it.

The complex is planned for a location near the intersection of Sixth Street and Rockledge Road. It will provide housing for individuals with little to no income who are living with serious mental illness and are eligible for voucher-based housing assistance. Schmitz said he hopes to begin construction in 2026, though it’s still unclear when the project will officially get underway.

While plans have been discussed for both projects for the last few years, Schmitz said this year, the Bert Nash Center is currently raising money before construction kicks off. The Youth and Recovery Center is expected to cost $12 million to renovate the building at 3500 Clinton Place, he said. Meanwhile, the supportive housing project will be built from the ground up, costing an estimated $19 million. Fundraising for that project also is underway, he said.

Finances are expected to be a crucial element during the next year for the Bert Nash organization. As the Journal-World reported in February, the organization had a $500,000 deficit in 2024, and expects expenses to exceed revenues by $1.5 million this year. The center has been serving more clients, but more of them are uninsured, Schmitz said. Bert Nash has alerted Douglas County commissioners that it likely will need increased county funding to close the financial gap.

•••

Looking back since the center’s inception, there are several achievements staff have caught the attention of staff members.

Farley said when the mental health center first opened its doors, it only had around three employees. Today, there are more than 400 people working at Bert Nash – including psychologists, psychiatrists, social workers, marriage and family therapists, registered nurses and more.

The Treatment and Recovery Center, which opened its doors in 2023, provides assessment, treatment and coordination of crisis care for all people experiencing a psychiatric, mental health, or substance use emergency. The center is operated by Bert Nash staff, and in March, it became the first facility in the state to be recognized for offering crisis care in line with high standards set by national health authorities.

It received its Crisis Intervention Center Provisional Licensure from the Kansas Department for Aging and Disability Services. In the notification letter, Wendy Jacobs, KDADS licensing supervisor, said, “We appreciate your contribution to our mission of partnering to promote prevention and recovery in Kansas communities.”

The CIC Licensure represents the care and treatment model recommended by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration. It allows the facility to operate as a recognized Crisis Intervention Center, where individuals in urgent need of mental health or substance abuse treatment can receive immediate and appropriate care.

The “provisional” part indicates that the facility has met the requirements for this type of care, but in about six months, the organization will come on site to review it in person before granting full licensure, Schmitz said.

photo by: Bert Nash Community Mental Health Center

Bob Nash holding a photo of his father, Dr. Bert Nash in 2014.

Bert Nash also became a certified community behavioral health clinic in 2023, recognizing the organization for providing comprehensive, coordinated, and accessible mental health and substance use disorder services to all, regardless of their ability to pay or insurance status.

Farley also said that Bert Nash was one of the first facilities in the U.S. to establish mental health first aid classes, a course that equips people with the skills to provide initial support and guidance to those who may be developing a mental health problem or experiencing a mental health crisis.

Another noteworthy milestone by Bert Nash staff is the WRAP program, providing therapists and case managers to Douglas County schools. The program started in 1997, and focuses on the elements of Wellness, Resources, Access and Prevention for students.

•••

Prior to his death in 2016, Bert Nash’s son, Bob Nash, told staff at the center that he was pleased the work his dad started has continued. He was confident his dad would be pleased, too.

“There was no egotism in his soul; it wasn’t there. He was just doing what he thought was the right thing to do,” Bob Nash told center staff members. “He was in the right place at the right time and he was the right person. It certainly was his calling, whether he considered it that or not.”

“I like to think about all of the lives that have been changed because of my father’s work,” Bob Nash said. “That’s what I think of when I see Bert Nash.”

To celebrate the anniversary, there will be a Pioneer Celebration featuring the KU Symphony Orchestra at the Lawrence Arts Center on May 5 from 5:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. People interested in attending can RSVP at Bert Nash’s website.

In addition, an exhibit honoring Bert Nash opened at the Watkins Museum of History on April 18, and highlights Bert Nash, the man, chronicles the growth of the center over the years, and discusses the center’s focus on service to its community and breaking down stigmas associated with mental health issues. There will be a Final Friday event on April 25 at the museum with community members invited to attend. Schmitz, along with other leaders, will give brief remarks.