Jill Harkavy-Friedman

Jill Harkavy-Friedman, PhD is the Senior Vice President of Research and leads the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention’s research program to advance the field of suicide prevention. AFSP's research program provides funding to research grants, offers workshops and training to researchers and disseminates research findings to increase public awareness and support advocacy in mental health and suicide prevention. With over 40 years of experience as a clinician and a researcher in the field of suicide prevention, she is passionate about translating research into practice, publishing over 130 peer-reviewed article and book chapters.

Dr. Harkavy-Friedman earned her B.A. in Psychology at the University of Pennsylvania and her PhD. in Clinical Psychology at the University of Florida. She completed her internship at Yale-New Haven Hospital. In 1984, she joined Montefiore Medical Center/Albert Einstein College of Medicine, establishing the Adolescent Depression and Suicide Program which is currently still active. In 1989, she moved to Columbia University/New York State Psychiatric Institute where she was an associate professor in the department of psychiatry until 2025. She joined the staff AFSP in 2011. She maintained a clinical practice in Manhattan for almost 40 years.

Rakesh Jain, MD, MPH, attended medical school at the University of Calcutta in India. He then attended graduate school at the University of Texas School of Public Health in Houston, where he was awarded a “National Institute/Center for Disease Control Competitive Traineeship”. His research thesis focused on impact of substance abuse. He graduated from the School of Public Health in 1987 with a Masters of Public Health (MPH) degree.

Dr. Jain served a three-year residency in Psychiatry at the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences at the University of Texas Medical School at Houston. He followed that by obtaining further specialty training, by undergoing a two-year fellowship in Child and Adolescent Psychiatry. In addition, Dr. Jain completed a postdoctoral fellowship in Research Psychiatry at the University of Texas Mental Sciences Institute, in Houston. He was awarded the “National Research Service Award” for the support of this postdoctoral fellowship.

Jill Harkavy-Friedman, PhD is the Senior Vice President of Research and leads the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention’s research program to advance the field of suicide prevention. AFSP's research program provides funding to research grants, offers workshops and training to researchers and disseminates research findings to increase public awareness and support advocacy in mental health and suicide prevention. With over 40 years of experience as a clinician and a researcher in the field of suicide prevention, she is passionate about translating research into practice, publishing over 130 peer-reviewed article and book chapters.

Dr. Harkavy-Friedman earned her B.A. in Psychology at the University of Pennsylvania and her PhD. in Clinical Psychology at the University of Florida. She completed her internship at Yale-New Haven Hospital. In 1984, she joined Montefiore Medical Center/Albert Einstein College of Medicine, establishing the Adolescent Depression and Suicide Program which is currently still active. In 1989, she moved to Columbia University/New York State Psychiatric Institute where she was an associate professor in the department of psychiatry until 2025. She joined the staff AFSP in 2011. She maintained a clinical practice in Manhattan for almost 40 years.

Jill Harkavy-Friedman, PhD is the Senior Vice President of Research and leads the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention’s research program to advance the field of suicide prevention. AFSP's research program provides funding to research grants, offers workshops and training to researchers and disseminates research findings to increase public awareness and support advocacy in mental health and suicide prevention. With over 40 years of experience as a clinician and a researcher in the field of suicide prevention, she is passionate about translating research into practice, publishing over 130 peer-reviewed article and book chapters.

Dr. Harkavy-Friedman earned her B.A. in Psychology at the University of Pennsylvania and her PhD. in Clinical Psychology at the University of Florida. She completed her internship at Yale-New Haven Hospital. In 1984, she joined Montefiore Medical Center/Albert Einstein College of Medicine, establishing the Adolescent Depression and Suicide Program which is currently still active. In 1989, she moved to Columbia University/New York State Psychiatric Institute where she was an associate professor in the department of psychiatry until 2025. She joined the staff AFSP in 2011. She maintained a clinical practice in Manhattan for almost 40 years.