In 1978 the foundation held its first Robert Lee Sutherland seminar, both to honor Sutherland and to create an opportunity for the Hogg Foundation to come together with its friends and allies to reflect on the state of mental health in Texas, the needs of the people of the state, and the optimal strategies for continuing to make progress toward a more humane and just system.

The inaugural seminar brought together more than 1,000 delegates for three days in May to examine the implications for Texas of the President's Commission on Mental Health Report. First Lady Rosalynn Carter was the keynote speaker. 

Since then the RLS seminars have been held every two years (except for in 2000), usually in Austin. The topics of the seminars track fairly closely with the foundation's priorities. In recent years they've been tied to specific grant programs the foundation has launched or is about to launch. 

Inaugural Seminar (1978)
Mental Health For The People of Texas

The first seminar brought together more than 1,000 delegates for three days in May to examine the implications for Texas of the President’s Commission on Mental Health Report. First Lady Rosalyn Carter was the keynote speaker.

Seminar II (1980)
Private Initiative in Support of Public Purpose - Mental Health in Texas

This seminar focused on how the private and public sectors can better help one another meet their common goals. It examined effective roles for foundations in mobilizing grass roots support for mental health planning, and discussed and evaluated roles for the private sector in the area of mental health.

Seminar III (1982)
Houston’s Children In Crisis & Ima Hogg Centennial

On day one participants gathered to commemorate Miss Ima's birthday and to honor her contributions to mental health services for children and families in Houston. The second day focused on the needs of children who are ill or have disabilities, who come from diverse cultures, who are educationally and vocationally underserved, and who are acting out or have behavioral disorders.

Seminar IV (1984)
Looking Forward: Texas and Its Elderly

This seminar focused on current issues and future dilemmas related to the aging population in Texas.

Seminar V (1986)
Mental Health Issues of the Mexican Origin Population in Texas

This seminar focused on mental health services for the Mexican-origin population in Texas, including the incidence and prevalence of mental health problems and associated risk factors among people of Mexican origin, prevention and treatment programs that are most suitable, and the impact of economics and political decision-making process on mental health services for this population.

Seminar VI (1988)
Community Care of the Chronically Mentally Ill

The invited delegates from around the state participated in four task groups that reviewed and discussed the activities and concerns of the foundation’s Commission on Community Care of the Mentally Ill.

Seminar VII (1990)
Mental Health Research in Texas

In connection with the Hogg Foundation's 50th anniversary, this scientific meeting brought together researchers from across the state with the goals of highlighting the best Texas has to offer in advancing scientific frontiers in the field of mental health.

Seminar VIII (1992)
Shared Opportunities for Schools and Communities

The main purpose of the seminar was to share recent information about the nature and effectiveness of school-linked services, policy options for implementing such programs, and future prospects for parents and teachers to participate in educational reform.

Seminar IX (1994)
Psychiatric Assessment of Mexican-Origin Populations

The seminar convened a diverse group of experts from Texas and Mexico to discuss adapting various psychiatric and diagnostic instruments for use in the border region.

Seminar X (1996)
Mental Health for Children in Houston

The seminar assembled those Houstonians most concerned with children’s issues to encourage the collaborative design, funding and implementation of a model program for children that could be replicated in other urban centers. A major public forum, the collaborative funding alliance known as the Greater Houston Collaborative for Children, grew out of the seminar.

Seminar XI (1998)
Ethnic Minority Mental Health in Texas

This seminar focused on identifying the most pressing mental health needs facing ethnic and racial minorities in Texas and on proposing strategies to address those needs. The outcomes of the seminar helped shape the foundation's minority mental health initiative to improve access to and quality of services and impact public policy.

Seminar XII (2002)
Juvenile Offenders with Mental Illness

The goal of the seminar was to promote coordination and collaboration of juvenile justice agencies, local and state law enforcement, mental health officials and community members in effectively identifying, treating and supervising juvenile offenders with severe emotional disturbances.

Seminar XIII (2004)
Safe and Appropriate Behavioral Interventions: Changing the Culture of Care

The seminar aimed to begin building a common language and a data collection framework to better implement federal restraints and seclusion standards within the context of quality service provision in Texas.

Seminar XIV (2006)
Transforming Mental Health Services in Texas: Building Bridges between Cultural Competence and Evidence-Based Practice

The goals of the seminar were to provide stimulating sessions on cultural competence and evidence-based practices, and to promote linguistically- and culturally-appropriate treatment, training and education.

Seminar XV (2008)
Integrated Health: Connecting Body and Mind

The Hogg Foundation convened the conference to share the knowledge and experience of more than 50 national, state and local physical and behavioral health care experts, providers and consumers with experience in systematically coordinating physical and behavioral health care.

Seminar XVI (2010)
A Call to Action: Achieving Mental Health, Recovery and Wellness Together

The goal of the seminar was to create a common knowledge base and dialogue about mental health, recovery and wellness. Conference attendees learned about experiences with recovery and wellness from mental health consumers, youth and their families.

Seminar XVII (2012)
Spiritual Crossroads: Faith, Mental Health and the African American Community

Among the goals of this conference were to enhance the knowledge of partipants of the impact spirituality has on the mental health of African Americans, to increase awareness of existing community-based strategies for improving the mental health of African Americans, and to facilitate networking among key regional stakeholders addressing African American mental health.

Seminar XVIII (2014)
The State of Mental Health Recovery: Research, Training, and Practice

On Sep. 8 and Sep. 9. 2014, the Hogg Foundation will be hosting Robert Lee Sutherland Seminar XVIII: The State of Mental Health Recovery: Research, Training, and Practice. SAMHSA defines mental health recovery as, "a process of change through which individuals improve their health and wellness, live a self-directed life, and strive to reach their full potential." Mental health recovery has been identified as the most important aim of behavioral health services and is set to transform current standards of practice. This fall, come find out about the future of mental health care training and upcoming grant programs offered by the foundation related to mental health recovery!