Kohlbeck Named to Endowed Suicide Prevention Research Professorship
Sara Kohlbeck, PhD, MPH, assistant professor in the Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Medicine and director of the Comprehensive Injury Center’s Division of Suicide Research and Healing, has been named as the inaugural holder of the Dr. and Mrs. Michael C. Kubly Community-Based Suicide Prevention Research Professorship at the Medical College of Wisconsin (MCW).
“I know that Mike would be pleased that this investment will help save lives in our community,” said Mrs. Billie Kubly. “MCW is a trusted community partner when it comes to mental health issues and has the capacity to bring together stakeholders who will be committed to reducing suicides.”
“I am honored to serve as the first Dr. and Mrs. Michael C. Kubly Community-Based Suicide Prevention Research Professor,” said Dr. Kohlbeck. “They have made significant and meaningful contributions for families through their advocacy and philanthropy, and I am looking forward to building on those accomplishments with their support.”
The professorship is part of a $5 million investment to support research and to better understand suicide and how to prevent it. The contribution also establishes the Dr. and Mrs. Michael C. Kubly Community-Based Suicide Prevention Research Program, which will be used to prevent suicide in the community and across the state.
Mrs. Kubly and her late husband Dr. Michael Kubly have a long history of advocacy and philanthropic investments to reduce the stigma around seeking mental health treatment and have supported the development of research-based interventions and therapies. Previous gifts to MCW included contributions benefiting families with young children in need of mental health services and establishing the Charles E. Kubly Chair in Psychiatry and Behavioral Medicine in honor of their son, Charlie, who died from suicide. Dr. Kubly graduated from the Marquette University School of Medicine, MCW’s predecessor institution, in 1963.
“The pandemic has highlighted the prevalence of mental health issues in our community,” said Jon Lehrmann, MD, holder of the Charles E. Kubly Chair in Psychiatry and Behavioral Medicine, who sees patients at the Zablocki VA Medical Center. “The truth is that these conditions were already growing before the spread of COVID-19 and require an urgent community response.”
“Billie has been a visionary and an inspirational leader for us, and this gift will have a far-reaching impact on our community,” Dr. Lehrmann added.
“We know that prevention and intervention efforts work,” said Terri A. deRoon-Cassini, PhD, MS, Director of the Comprehensive Injury Center. “What’s needed is a comprehensive effort that makes the right resources available to providers and community groups. Mrs. Kubly’s generosity gives us an opportunity to launch this work and save lives.”