Guiding San Francisco youth, ages 4-18, toward resilience and well-being through community-based mental health services.
Edgewood provides compassionate, comprehensive mental health care for Bay Area children and families. Founded in 1851, Edgewood is the first children’s non-profit in the western U.S., now serving youth through early intervention, crisis care, and intensive services at our San Francisco campus and five area locations.
Children face an unprecedented mental health crisis worsened by the pandemic, with anxiety, depression, and suicide rates rising. Most children get better with proper care, but service gaps and inequities persist—families often can’t access timely or affordable help. California faces a severe shortage of child psychiatry providers, especially for children under 12. Provider diversity is limited, widening barriers for minority and bilingual youth.
The Edgewood Institute is restarting to address these urgent needs, focusing on training, research, and innovation in youth mental health care. The Institute supports providers of today and the future through:
Led by CEO Lynn Dolce and consultant Dr. Ken Epstein, Edgewood Institute benefits from local leaders and partnerships, driving forward best practices and family-centered approaches. Edgewood’s Kinship Support Network—replicated nationwide—exemplifies how we innovate and scale impact.
The pandemic increased awareness and demand for mental health care—Edgewood is ready to meet this need but relies on philanthropic support for training, evaluation, and quality improvement. Public funding is unpredictable and does not cover critical research or high-acuity programs.
The Edgewood Institute is an investment in the health and future of San Francisco Bay Area youth. Learn more and join us in this effort to expand expert youth mental healthcare training, innovation, and research.
