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About EPC

About Us

A statewide partnership focused on early identification, intervention, and recovery for first episode psychosis.

Who We Are

Missouri's Early Psychosis Care Center

Missouri’s Early Psychosis Care (EPC) Center is a partnership between the Missouri Department of Mental Health (DMH), the Missouri Institute of Mental Health (MIMH), and the Missouri Behavioral Health Council (MBHC). The EPC Center’s goal is to highlight the importance of early identification, intervention, and recovery for first episode psychosis (FEP). These are key components of reducing FEP’s effect on individuals, their loved ones, and the community.

The EPC Center provides education and outreach to behavioral health centers, school personnel, first responders, and other agencies across the state to improve the quality of care for individuals experiencing psychosis. In these efforts the EPC Center shares new research, best practice, trends, and strategies. The design, delivery, and evaluation of early psychosis care should be informed by those most affected. The EPC Center is committed to recognizing the importance of lived experience in improving outcomes and quality of life for those experiencing early psychosis. The EPC Center involves persons with lived experience and their family members in developing initiatives, identifying goals, needs, and objectives. Working together in a compassionate, evidenced-based manner, the EPC Center creates collaborative and safe spaces ensuring that all are empowered and can be heard.

The Early Psychosis Care Center team standing together outdoors in purple EPC shirts

Our Partners

DMH

Missouri Department of Mental Health

MIMH

Missouri Institute of Mental Health

MBHC

Missouri Behavioral Health Council

Video

See Our Work

Our Team

Get To Know Us Better

Meet the people behind Missouri’s Early Psychosis Care Center.

JJ Gossrau

JJ Gossrau

MSW, LCSW

Director
Early Psychosis Care Center

Director of Young Adult Services
Missouri Department of Mental Health

JJ Gossrau

MSW, LCSW

Director, Early Psychosis Care Center

JJ Gossrau, MSW, LCSW, is the Director of the Early Psychosis Care (EPC) Center and the Director of Young Adult Services at the Department of Mental Health. Her responsibilities include supervision and development of the EPC Center and connecting with key stakeholders including state government offices, private and nonprofit community service agencies, universities, and community behavioral health provider agencies. She is passionate about outreaching, educating, and supporting young people, transforming psychosis care, and ensuring timely access to effective early intervention services. JJ received her Master of Social Work from the Brown School of Social Work at Washington University. In her free time, she enjoys walking her dog Jessie and spending time with her husband and 2 boys.
Rachel Kryah

Rachel Kryah

MSW, MPH, CPS, FSP

Associate Director
Early Psychosis Care Center

Director of Applied Research and Systems for Children, Youth, and Families
Missouri Institute of Mental Health

Rachel Kryah

MSW, MPH, CPS, FSP

Associate Director, Early Psychosis Care Center

Rachel Kryah is the Associate Director of the Early Psychosis Care Center. Her responsibilities include collaborating with external stakeholders to drive our initiatives, identifying and evaluating new resources, coordinating projects, and overseeing the smooth function of the Early Psychosis Care team. She is passionate about driving innovation in early psychosis care and spearheading initiatives that enhance access, reduce stigma, and promote community integration. Rachel received her Masters of Social Work and Public Health from St. Louis University. She is also a Certified Peer Specialist and Certified Family Support Provider and is committed to involving persons with lived experience and their family members when developing initiatives, identifying goals, needs, and objectives of the Early Psychosis Care Center.  In her free time, she enjoys running, yoga, reading, and spending time with her husband, two children, two cats, and a puppy.
Rebecca N. Preston

Rebecca N. Preston

PhD

Clinical Lead
Early Psychosis Care Center

Senior Clinical Research Scientist
Missouri Institute of Mental Health

Rebecca N. Preston

PhD

Clinical Lead, Early Psychosis Care Center

Dr. Rebecca Preston is the Clinical Lead of the Early Psychosis Care Center. She received her PhD in Clinical Psychology from Hosftra University with training strongly rooted in evidence-based treatment modalities and rigorous research methods. Her research interests concentrate on stressors and impaired self-regulatory behaviors that both predate and maintain disorders of self-control and co-morbid psychiatric disorders in vulnerable populations. With the Early Psychosis Care Center, Rebecca develops trainings and facilitates the implementation of evidence-based practices to prevent the onset of and provide treatment for early psychosis in individuals in Missouri. In her free time, she enjoys rock climbing, cooking, and hanging out with her family.
Jodi Woodruff

Jodi Woodruff

PhD

Lead Evaluator
Early Psychosis Care Center

Assistant Research Professor
Missouri Institute of Mental Health

Jodi Woodruff

PhD

Lead Evaluator, Early Psychosis Care Center

Dr. Jodi Woodruff is the Lead Evaluator of the Early Psychosis Care Center. Her responsibilities include the use of data to tell stories about how programs like Early Psychosis Care are working to improve lives. She is passionate about using data to inform the best care for individuals experiencing early psychosis. Jodi received her PhD in Behavioral Neuroscience from the University of Missouri in St. Louis. In her free time, she enjoys spending as much time as possible outdoors, yoga, and hanging out with family.
Brooke Holterman

Brooke Holterman

MSW, LCSW

Learning & Development Manager
Early Psychosis Care Center

Learning & Development Manager
Missouri Behavioral Health Council

Brooke Holterman

MSW, LCSW

Learning & Development Manager, Early Psychosis Care Center

Brooke Holterman is the Learning & Development Manager at the Missouri Behavioral Health Council and partners with the Early Psychosis Care Center. Her responsibilities include connecting behavioral health providers to the Early Psychosis Care Center, executing learning strategies and training programs, and tracking learning effectiveness. She is passionate about improving access to treatment and overall patient care for those diagnosed with serious mental illness. Brooke received her Master of Social Work from the University of Missouri and is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker in Missouri. In her free time, she enjoys spending time with her husband and two children, visiting with friends and family, and being outdoors.
Katie Horstman

Katie Horstman

BS

Director of Education and Engagement
Early Psychosis Care Center

Director of Education and Engagement
Missouri Behavioral Health Council

Katie Horstman

BS

Director of Education and Engagement, Early Psychosis Care Center

Katie Horstman is the Director of Education and Engagement of the Missouri Behavioral Health Council. Her responsibilities include connecting Missouri Behavioral Health Council members to Early Psychosis Care initiatives and providing them with information about training and events. She is passionate about coordinating and providing first-class conferences, events, and training, as well as breaking the stigma around behavioral health. She received her bachelor’s in Business Administration at Lincoln University. In her free time, she enjoys spending time with her husband and two daughters. She also enjoys farm life in the booming metropolis of New Bloomfield, Missouri.
Grace Chapel

Grace Chapel

BS

Youth and Family Liaison
Early Psychosis Care Center

Program Support Coordinator
Missouri Institute of Mental Health

Grace Chapel

BS

Youth and Family Liaison, Early Psychosis Care Center

Grace Chapel is the Youth and Family Liaison of the Early Psychosis Care Center. Her responsibilities include emphasizing the youth perspective and ensuring our materials and outreach resonate with those we aim to serve. She is passionate about empowering and fostering a sense of optimism in young people experiencing psychosis and their families. Grace received her Bachelor of Science in communication disorders from Florida State University. In her free time, she loves to travel, crochet, and play board games with friends.

Lived Experience Consultants

Consultants who share their own experience to keep our work youth- and lived-experience driven.

Jennifer Gerlach

Jennifer Gerlach

MSW

Lived Experience Consultant
Early Psychosis Care Center

Jennifer Gerlach

MSW

Lived Experience Consultant, Early Psychosis Care Center

Jennifer Gerlach is a clinician and Licensed Clinical Social Worker in Illinois specializing in psychosis and neurodiversity. She provides consultation services for EPC. She holds a hope-filled and upbeat perspective on recovery for individuals experiencing early psychosis. She is an individual with lived experience herself. In her free time, she enjoys writing and swinging in her hammock while watching the squirrels play in the trees above.
Lori Johnson

Lori Johnson

Lived Experience Consultant
Early Psychosis Care Center

Lori Johnson

Lived Experience Consultant, Early Psychosis Care Center

Lori Johnson, Certified Peer Support Specialist, works as a Peer Case Manager at DBSA/St. Louis Empowerment Center. She offers lived experience with mental health and addiction. She helps those experiencing homelessness, mental health issues, and substance use by recommending resources and courses of action to benefit clients’ needs and return each to optimal quality of life. She offers her lived experience with EPC and sharing her background living with her mother who dealt with schizophrenia. It is her passion to give back to her community and help those who are in need! In her free time she enjoys doing art, yoga, and spending time with her son.
Christa Francis

Christa Francis

Lived Experience Consultant
Early Psychosis Care Center

Christa Francis

Lived Experience Consultant, Early Psychosis Care Center

Christa Francis has been working with the Missouri Early Psychosis Care Center to ensure the Center is making youth and lived experience driven decisions. Her willingness to share her story and open mindedness allow for a safe environment to express awareness around psychosis. She is working toward becoming a Certified Peer Specialist because she is passionate about helping others. In her free time, she enjoys writing poems and hanging out with friends.

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