Todd Ouida Lecture

The Todd Ouida Annual Lecture in Childhood Anxiety and Depression honors the memory of Todd Ouida by promoting and supporting outstanding young researchers.

Despite experiencing severe anxiety throughout his early childhood, Todd overcame the disorder and went on to have a rich high school experience, later earning a degree in psychology from U-M. He had just launched into the beginning of a promising career when he lost his life in the September 11, 2001 World Trade Center attacks at the age of 25. The lecture is traditionally held in the fall at the Rachel Upjohn Building and features a prominent speaker with expertise in anxiety or depression among youth.

Todd’s parents, Herb and Andrea Ouida, also established the Todd Ouida Clinical Scholar Awards, which are designed to further the work of outstanding young researchers working in childhood anxiety and depression.

Honoring the 20th Anniversary of the Todd Ouida Clinical Scholar Award and Annual Lecture in Childhood Anxiety and Depression

After losing their son, Herb and Andrea Ouida gifted an endowed fund to the Eisenberg Family Depression Center honoring Todd's meaningful legacy. This gift has allowed the EFDC to support early-career faculty as they research novel treatments for childhood anxiety and depression. In honor of the 20th year of being able to provide this essential support, we want to thank the Ouida family for their generosity.

Past Lecturers

2022	Eli Lebowitz, Ph.D. Parent-Based Treatment for Child Anxiety and OCD Yale University
2021	Emily Bilek, Ph.D. Improving Psychotherapy for Anxious Youth University of Michigan Ewa Czyz, Ph.D. Harnessing Technology to Assess and Intervene with Adolescents at Elevated Suicide Risk University of Michigan Jacek Debiec, M.D., Ph.D. Electroconvulsive Shocks and Aversive Memory Networks University of Michigan Maria Muzik, M.D., M.S. Technological Solutions to Detect and Treat Perinatal Mood and Anxiety Disorders in Prenatal Care University of Michigan
2020	Jean A. Frazier, M.D. Mood and Anxiety Disorders in Preterm-Born Children and Adolescents University of Massachusetts
2019	Joan Luby, M.D. Early Childhood Depression: Parent-Child Psychotherapy Targeting Emotion Development Washington University School of Medicine, St. Louis
2018	Research presentations by Ouida Scholar Award winners
2017	Cheryl King, Ph.D. A Broad Perspective on Youth Suicide Prevention: What Can We Do? University of Michigan
2016	Jim Hudziak, M.D. Why Child Psychiatry Should Be the Centerpiece of Health Care Reform: The Science Behind the Argument University of Vermont
2015	Eric Storch, Ph.D. D-Cycloserine Augmentation of Cognitive Behavioral Therapy in Pediatric Obsessive Compulsive Disorder University of South Florida
2014	Melissa DelBello, M.D. Treatment of Bipolar Disorder in Children and Adolescents University of Cincinnati
2013	Jay N. Giedd, M.D. The Teen Brain: Insights from Neuroimaging National Institute of Mental Health
2012	Mary A. Fristad, Ph.D., ABPP Nonpharmacologic Adjunctive Interventions for Childhood Mood Disorders Society of Clinical Child and Adolescent Psychology, American Board of Clinical Child and Adolescent Psychology, and The Ohio State University
2011	David Brent, M.D. Assistance for Treatment Resistance in Adolescent Depression: Lessons from the TORDIA study University of Pittsburgh
2010	Anne Marie Albano, Ph.D., ABPP Adolescents, Anxiety, and Development: Treatment During the Stage of Storm and Stress Columbia University
2009	Joan Asarnow, Ph.D. Pediatric Depression: Strategies for Improving University of California, Los Angeles
2008	John Piacentini, M.D. Multimodal Treatment of Childhood Anxiety Disorders University of California, Los Angeles
2007	John T. Walkup, M.D. Treatment of Anxiety Disorders in Children: Update on the Child/Adolescent Anxiety Multimodal Study (CAMS) Johns Hopkins University
2006	Presentations by Todd Ouida Clinical Scholar Award winners
2005	Daniel Pine, M.D. Developmental Perspectives on Anxiety: An Update from NIMH National Institute on Mental Health
2004	John March, M.D., M.P.H. The Treatments of Adolescents with Depression Study (TADS): Stage 1 Outcomes Duke University
2003	Karen D. Wagner, M.D. Major Depression and Anxiety in Children and Adolescents: The Need to Detect and Treat Early University of Texas Medical Branch, Galveston

Past Scholars

2022	Jane Harness, D.O. Development and Preliminary Testing of a "Papageno" Story Interview Intervention
2021	Adam Horwitz, Ph.D. Low Burden Adaptive Mobile Interventions for Mood and Suicide Risk
2020	Megan M. Julian, Ph.D. Building a New Research Network for Academic Programs and Clinics in the Field of Early Childhood Mental Health: Collecting Research Data Utilizing the DC:0-5 Diagnostic Framework
2019	Julie E. Premo, Ph.D. Self-regulation as a Target of Intervention in Parents of Anxious Children
2018	Ewa Czyz, Ph.D. Identifying Early Predictors of Suicide Risk-related Outcomes in Adolescents
2017	Emily Bilek, Ph.D. Piloting a “Self-distancing” Augmentation to Exposure Therapy with Clinically Anxious Youth
2016	Wael Shamseddeen, M.D., M.P.H Electroconvulsive Therapy for Adolescents with Resistant Depression
2015	Jacek Debiec, M.D., Ph.D. Attenuating Depressive Ruminations in Patients Receiving ECT through Pre-treatment Recall of Depressive Thoughts
2014	Elizabeth Koschmann, Ph.D. Dissemination and Implementation of Evidence-based Practices for the School-based Support of Students with Depression and Anxiety
2013	Ellen Barrett-Becker, Ph.D. Evaluating Effective Outreach and Support for Military Families with Young Children Following Deployment
2012	Erika Bocknek, Ph.D. Building Effective Outreach and Support for Military Families with Young Children Following Deployment
2011	Polly Gipson, Ph.D. Pilot Feasibility Study of Community-based Preventive Interventions for Ethnic Minority and Low-income Adolescents at Risk for Suicide
2010	James Swain, M.D., Ph.D. Brain Imaging Studies of the Biological Basis of Families’ Vulnerabilities to Mental Health Problems at Different Developmental Stages
2009	Kate Rosenblum, Ph.D. The New Beginnings Project: Improving Outcomes for Infants and Children in Foster Care
2008	Julie Kaplow, Ph.D. Children’s Psychological and Physiological Functioning Following the Loss of a Parent
2007	Cindy Ewell Foster, Ph.D. Community-based Depression Awareness and Suicide Prevention Interventions for Vulnerable Youth
2006	Rich Dopp, M.D. Levels of Physical Activity in Youth with Depressive Disorders
2005	Maria Muzik, M.D. Circle of Security for High-risk Security
2004	Michelle Kees, Ph.D. The Impact of Maternal Trauma and Post Traumatic Stress Disorder on Children and Parenting
2003	Kate Fitzgerald, M.D. Children with Obsessive Compulsive Disorder

About Todd

As a child growing up in River Edge, New Jersey, Todd suffered from a panic disorder so severe that he had to leave school, ultimately missing three years while in intensive therapy. He returned to school in the seventh grade and grew into a popular, generous teen who eventually took the bold step of coming to the University of Michigan to earn a degree in psychology.

Todd Ouida's premature death at 25 in the World Trade Center in the fall of 2001 was, for his parents, a tragic end to a life that had included considerable hard-won triumph.

For Todd's parents, Herb and Andrea Ouida, the route toward accepting their son's death has been to honor Todd's memory by helping other children suffering from depression and anxiety disorders. Their Todd Ouida Children's Foundation, which raises money to support psychological services for families in need in the New York-New Jersey area, now supports dozens of organizations and has already distributed several hundred thousand dollars in gifts.

Visit Todd Ouida Children's Foundation Website