The Jed Foundation (JED) is a New York‑based charitable organization that focuses on promoting emotional health and preventing suicide among teens and young adults in the United States, primarily by partnering with high schools, colleges, and community partners rather than as a direct clinical provider. ¹ Founded in 2000 after the suicide of the founders’ college‑aged son, JED has grown into a national player in youth mental health programming and systems‑change work. ²

History

The Jed Foundation was created in 2000 by Phil and Donna Satow following the 1998 suicide of their youngest son, Jed, while he was in college, with the goal of reducing similar tragedies through campus‑based prevention and mental-health support systems. ³ The organization  emphasizes population‑level prevention over individual treatment. ³

JED’s core strategy is a comprehensive public‑health approach that aims to equip teens and young adults with “skills and knowledge to help themselves and each other,” to strengthen secondary and higher‑education mental health and suicide‑prevention systems, and to mobilize communities around youth mental health. ⁴ The group runs long‑term partnerships with colleges and universities built around what it calls a Comprehensive Approach to Mental Health Promotion and Suicide Prevention, which includes campus policy review, crisis‑management planning, gatekeeper training, and promotion of help‑seeking behaviors. JED has parallel initiatives in high schools that focus on preparing students emotionally for life after graduation and for secondary‑school systems to integrate mental health supports into routine school practice. ⁴

In addition to school‑system work, JED produces youth‑ and parent‑facing content, including online resources and playbooks, and participates in media collaborations designed to elevate youth mental health narratives. For example, the organization was included in a group of organizations participating in MTV’s Mental Health Youth Action Forum, an initiative that uses storytelling and entertainment partnerships to encourage young people to talk about mental health and take supportive actions for themselves and peers. ⁵

Leadership and Governance

As of the mid‑2020s, the Jed Foundation’s executive leadership included a chief executive officer and a president who came from nonprofit and philanthropic management backgrounds. In 2021, JED hired attorney and nonprofit executive Rebecca Benghiat as president to lead expansion of its college and high‑school programs and to position the organization for larger‑scale systems change across higher education and secondary education. ⁶ Benghiat previously held senior roles at youth and mental‑health‑related entities including the Quad Preparatory School, a New York City K‑12 school integrating academic instruction with social‑emotional learning, and citiesRISE, an international youth mental health initiative. She has helped launch several philanthropic organizations such as the Child Mind Institute and the Seleni Institute. ⁷

JED’s governance structure includes a board of directors drawn from nonprofit, philanthropy, and business sectors; the organization also employs specialized staff in program design, research, and policy, including roles dedicated to strategic mental health initiatives. ⁷

Advocacy

Jed Foundation has engaged in public‑facing advocacy around youth mental health systems, often through partnerships with media companies, foundations, and other nonprofits. The organization routinely promotes national crisis resources, including the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline and the Crisis Text Line, and encourages schools and communities to normalize the use of such services. ⁸

JED also convenes and participates in policy‑oriented events such as youth mental health policy summits and releases research and guidance on emerging issues, including the mental‑health implications of generative artificial intelligence for teens and young adults. ⁸

1. “The Jed Foundation,” homepage, accessed February 24, 2026, https://jedfoundation.org.
2. “Our Team,” The Jed Foundation, accessed February 24, 2026, https://jedfoundation.org/meet-our-team/.
3. “OUR TURN TO TALK PLAYBOOK,” The Jed Foundation, September 30, 2022, PDF, https://jedfoundation.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/09/OTT-Playbook-9.30.22.pdf.
4. The Jed Foundation. “The Story of JED.” Accessed February 24, 2026. https://jedfoundation.org/the-story-of-jed/
5. “The Jed Foundation, Along with Other Leading Nonprofits, to be Part of MTV Mental Health Youth Action Forum,” The Jed Foundation, accessed February 24, 2026, https://jedfoundation.org/jed-to-be-part-of-mtv-mental-health-youth-action-forum/.
6. “Rebecca Benghiat, Seasoned Leader in Nonprofit Growth Joins JED as President & COO,” The Jed Foundation, March 8, 2023, https://jedfoundation.org/rebecca-benghiat-seasoned-leader-joins-jed-as-president-coo/.
7. “2024 JED Policy Summit Speakers,” The Jed Foundation, October 2024, PDF, https://jedfoundation.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/2024-Policy-Summit_Speakers.pdf.
8. The Jed Foundation. A Decade of Improving College Mental Health Systems: JED Campus Impact Report. April 11, 2024. PDF file. https://jedfoundation.org/wp-content/uploads/2024/04/JED-Campus-Impact-Report.Final_.04112024.pdf