Art Fuller

Voice Up is led by Art Fuller, a servant leader with experience helping communities. He has proven success in multiple areas:

Mental Health Leadership:

Dual Degree Doctor of Health Sciences / Master of Public Health Student (December 2025 Graduation)

Dissertation IRB Approved: Perceptions with Impact - A qualitative study of African American college students and their perceptions of possible careers in behavioral health

Won the Hamilton Award for Outstanding Contributions to Behavioral Health

Chief of Certified Community Behavioral Health Clinics

National panelist for the National Council on Mental Wellbeing

Led organization to achieve special state recognition in mental health (only 8 sites selected statewide)

Education Innovation:

Founded 3 public schools serving 865 students, achieving national recognition for achievement and cultural diversity supporting over 18 international languages. 

Secured $26.8M in funding and $2M+ in federal grants

Worked with Tennessee's $3.79B education budget and responsible for financial reconciliation by the State Board of Education.

Selected by the state as a School Reform Provider

Achieved top 5% status for student learning gains

Business Success:

Currently impacts students in over 2,000 cities and 100 countries through Voice Up

Created innovative remote learning programs and digital university for social impact leaders

Successfully managed multi-million dollar budgets and led major organizational changes

Evidence Based Approach

The Harvard Study of Adult Development proves that "close relationships, more than money or fame, are what keep people happy throughout their lives" (Waldinger et al., 2017). Voice Up's conversation-centered approach directly builds these protective relationships while addressing the key finding that "81% of adults who were lonely also had anxiety or depression compared to 29% of those who were less lonely" (Harvard Graduate School of Education Making Caring Common Project, 2024).

The Bottom Line

Voice Up is changing mental health care by recognizing that lasting improvement doesn't come from treating symptoms but from creating authentic communities where people can discover and express their true selves while connecting to meaningful purpose. Voice Up has created the first complete, lifelong approach to mental health that addresses the root causes of depression, anxiety, and social isolation across all ages.

This new approach offers customized strategies that help organizations of all sizes become places where people discover authentic purpose, creating lasting mental health benefits for individuals while strengthening entire communities. Voice Up shows that the future of mental health lies not in isolated treatments but in building purpose-driven communities where people can safely share their authentic selves while serving something greater than themselves.

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References

American Psychiatric Association. (2024). Healthy Minds Monthly Poll. American Psychiatric Association.

Bell, G., Stott, J., et al. (2022). Sense of purpose is linked to reduced risk of dementia. University College London Research.

Borawski, D. (2020). Loneliness makes it difficult to perceive life as meaningful by inhibiting authenticity. Jan Kochanowski University Research.

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2025). Health effects of social isolation and loneliness. CDC Social Connection Initiative.

Forrest, C. B., Koenigsberg, L. J., Harvey, F. E., et al. (2025). Trends in US children's mortality, chronic conditions, obesity, functional status, and symptoms. *JAMA*, published online July 7, 2025. doi:10.1001/jama.2025.9855

Harvard Graduate School of Education Making Caring Common Project. (2024). Research on loneliness, purpose, and mental health outcomes. Harvard Graduate School of Education.

Holt-Lunstad, J., Smith, T. B., & Layton, J. B. (2010). Social relationships and mortality risk: A meta-analytic review. PLOS Medicine, 7(7), e1000316.

Murthy, V. (2023). Our epidemic of loneliness and isolation: The U.S. Surgeon General's Advisory. U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine. (2020). Social isolation and loneliness in older adults: Opportunities for the health care system. The National Academies Press.

Sutin, A. R., Luchetti, M., Aschwanden, D., Stephan, Y., Sesker, A. A., & Terracciano, A. (2021). Sense of purpose in life is associated with lower risk of incident dementia: A meta-analysis. Alzheimer's & Dementia, 17(7), 1187-1196.

Waldinger, R., Schulz, M., Crowell, A., & Hauser, S. (2017). Harvard Study of Adult Development. Harvard Medical School.

World Health Organization Commission on Social Connection. (2023). Global estimates of social isolation and loneliness. World Health Organization.