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Indian-origin teen wins award for mental health advocacy in Texas
Founder of the Let’s Learn Foundation, Rohan Satija will receive a $3,000 scholarship and opportunities to collaborate with The Jed Foundation.
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Pranavi Sharma - Thu, 26, Jun 2025
- 02:57 EDT
- 16
Rohan Satija, a 17-year-old Indian-origin student from Austin, Texas, has been named one of two recipients of the 2025 Student Voice of Mental Health Award by The Jed Foundation, a nonprofit focused on emotional health and suicide prevention among youth. The announcement was made on June 11.
Satija, who recently graduated from Westwood High School, was recognized for turning his personal struggles with bullying, isolation, and anxiety into community-centered advocacy. He founded the Let’s Learn Foundation, which distributes books and school supplies in underserved areas, and launched the Vibrant Voices Project, a storytelling initiative for youth in juvenile detention.
“As someone who has faced mental health challenges, receiving this award feels like a full-circle moment,” Satija told The Jed Foundation. “Through storytelling, I’ve worked to support youth in low-resource communities, normalize the conversation, build empathy, and reshape policy.”
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He also serves on several state and national advisory boards, including those at the National Alliance on Mental Illness in Texas and The Born This Way Foundation. Satija will begin his undergraduate studies at the University of Texas at Austin this fall.
Alongside Satija, 20-year-old Nora Yanyi Sun of Seattle, Washington, was also named a 2025 recipient. A junior at Harvard University, Sun became a crisis counselor after helping a high school classmate with depression. She later founded the Little Talks Movement, a peer-to-peer mental health support platform, and currently leads mercuri.world, a nonprofit translating global mental health resources.
Winners receive a $3,000 scholarship and opportunities to collaborate with The Jed Foundation. They were honored at the foundation’s annual gala on June 4 at Cipriani Wall Street in New York City.
“We are inspired by Rohan and Nora’s remarkable dedication to mental health advocacy,” said JED CEO John MacPhee. “Their leadership exemplifies how young people can make a meaningful difference in preventing suicide and supporting emotional well-being for students.”
The Student Voice of Mental Health Awards, now in their 18th year, have honored 27 students since their inception in 2008.
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