Sacred Heart Welcomes Inaugural Director of Health & Wellness

Dr. Sara Gandy is part of the campus community wellness focus in partnership with Stanford Medicine

In partnership with Stanford Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Science, Sacred Heart Schools, Atherton (SHS) has appointed its first director of campus health and wellness, Dr. Sara Gandy―a hire that signals an important step forward in the institution's strategic, multi-year commitment to improve the overall wellness of its school community.
 
In this newly created role, Dr. Gandy will guide the development of a long-term strategic health and wellness plan for students across all divisions, evaluate school culture, recommend and help implement best practices in child and adolescent mental healthcare, and create a comprehensive parent education program that is aligned with the school's mission, is responsive to timely trends, and relays the most current research in child and adolescent development.
 
"Having worked with Dr. Gandy in a variety of capacities over the last decade, I am confident her vast expertise and experience will be an invaluable asset to our school, and instrumental to the fulfillment of current priorities," said James Everitt, SHS director of mission initiatives and institutional planning and former principal of Sacred Heart Preparatory.
 
Currently affiliated with Stanford Hospital and an associate clinical professor with Stanford University's School of Medicine, Dr. Gandy has been serving adolescent through geriatric patients for more than 20 years, notably as an attending psychiatrist with top-rated medical centers including Palo Alto Medical Foundation, San Francisco General Hospital, Santa Clara Valley Medical Center, as well as the Palo Alto Veterans Affairs Hospital. In private practice since 2005, Dr. Gandy has had extensive experience with adolescent psychiatry, collaborating with local schools, counselors, pediatricians, and a wide referral network of specialists. In addition to her role teaching and mentoring psychiatric medical residents at Stanford, for six years she served as the acting clinical director for the geriatric psychiatry clinic, providing consultation as well as treatment in complex cases, family intervention, and coordination of care.
 
A graduate of the University of Florida College of Medicine, Dr. Gandy completed residencies in pediatric neurology and adult and adolescent psychiatry with Stanford Hospital, as well as a yearlong geriatric fellowship with the Palo Alto Veterans Affairs Hospital.
 
The creation of this new position and Dr. Gandy's subsequent appointment are a central part of Sacred Heart's strategic health and wellness initiative. To date, other related efforts have encompassed key changes to the high school's academic schedule and daily practices, including implementation of a pilot "late-start" Wednesday; expansion of parent education programs focused on health and wellness; a close review of school policy and education related to healthy teen sexuality; and the recent launch of a Healthy Living program for employees, geared to help in achieving work-life balance.
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Sacred Heart Schools Atherton

Sacred Heart Schools, Atherton

150 Valparaiso Ave
Atherton, CA 94027
650 322 1866
Founded by the Society of the Sacred Heart, SHS is a Catholic, independent, co-ed day school for students in preschool through grade 12