Dr. Shawna Aarons-Cooke Leads Blanton-Peale Into Its Next Chapter

The President and CEO of New York’s nearly 90-year-old mental health institute on culturally affirming care, protecting her own peace at the top, and the courageous conversations she is bringing to Teal Day.

Dr. Shawna Aarons-Cooke stands among the women in business shaping how New York City cares for its mental health. As President and CEO of Blanton-Peale Institute & Counseling Center, she leads a licensed counseling and training institution established in 1937, one that provides psychotherapy and psychiatric services, a psychoanalytic training program, and wellness training for organizations and communities. October brings both National Women’s Small Business Month and World Mental Health Day on the 10th, and few leaders sit more squarely at that intersection than Dr. Aarons-Cooke.

Her path to the top began in corporate philanthropy, where she supervised millions of dollars in annual national charitable giving and community awareness programs supporting human services organizations. She went on to earn a Master of Social Work at New York University and spent 15 years at a Westchester community-based nonprofit, rising from clinical social worker to Director of Mental Health Programs, Chief Operating Officer, and ultimately Chief Strategy & Program Officer and SVP of Programs. Over two decades she has also built a practice in psychotherapy, coaching, and community education workshops.

Dr. Shawna Aarons-Cooke is the author of two books and co-author of a chapter in Decolonized Clinical Supervision & Leadership: A Social Work Perspective (2026). She holds a Doctor of Social Work from Simmons University, a Master of Social Work from New York University, and a Bachelor of Science in Mass Communications and Public Relations from Boston University.

How Dr. Shawna Aarons-Cooke Honors a 90-Year Legacy

Stepping into leadership of an organization with nearly nine decades of history, she has focused on carrying its founding purpose forward. The institute was created to relieve human suffering through an integrated approach to care and training, and she honors that mission today through holistic mental health services and training programs for mental health professionals, faith leaders, and the wider community.

She is clear that the world those founders knew no longer exists. The mental health system, social norms, and technology have all transformed since 1937, and her work is about preparing clients and trainees to move confidently through that new landscape. “I am proud that Blanton-Peale remains a resource for New Yorkers seeking access to quality mental health services and training that facilitate healing and wellness in all aspects of life,” she says.

Training the Workforce Communities Need

Culturally affirming care sits at the center of Blanton-Peale’s work, and Dr. Shawna Aarons-Cooke speaks about the commitment with conviction. She points to the lasting, generational impact of historical harms, reflected in persistent economic, educational, legal, and health disparities. “To effectively provide mental health services to support the full diversity of lived experiences and cultures of New York City requires explicit dedicated strategies to repair and empower those among us who are most harmed, marginalized, oppressed, and impacted,” she says.

For her, closing the gap in access starts with the people providing care. “Increasing access to culturally affirming mental health care will require expansive training for the existing and incoming workforce of professionals,” she explains. The institute’s BIPOC Fellowship Program prepares advanced-year Master of Social Work candidates to serve under-resourced and marginalized communities through a dedicated curriculum, clinical supervision, and a reflective process group, while its psychoanalytic training courses and lectures carry the same trauma-informed, resilience-oriented approach.

Her message to the field is direct. “Mental health professionals and the educational institutions who train future generations of providers will do well to understand the potential benefits to adapting our models of care, and the risks of further harm if we do not take action,” she says.

Enduring Is Not a Strategy

Like so many women leaders, Dr. Shawna Aarons-Cooke spent years putting family, friends, her team, and her organization first. After 25 years in wellness and human services work, with rising responsibility and steady exposure to stress, crisis, and trauma, she arrived at a firm conclusion. “I have learned that I absolutely must prioritize my own wellness. Or, I won’t be here very long,” she says. “Our bodies are not wired to endure long-term mental and/or emotional stress.”

“Enduring isn’t a strategy that supports wellness.”

Dr. Shawna Aarons-Cooke

Her routine is proactive and adaptive. Each day includes time for meditation, reflection, expressive writing, movement, music, and something she loves, and most days find her in the park with her dog, sitting by the water. She sets aside at least one day a week to restore, step away from technology, and disconnect. During more intense seasons, she leans on caring people around her, takes time off, books a retreat, or turns to counseling.

For women in business who are running on empty, her advice begins with listening inward. “Our ability to know ourselves and how we’re feeling in any given moment is a gift that we have to honor,” she says. Rest, a good cry, a support system, or a fresh look at how life and work are structured can all be the answer. “Whatever the case may be, enduring isn’t a strategy that supports wellness. Instead, give yourself the time and attention necessary to determine how best to support you and your wellness now.”

Courageous Conversations on October 22

This month, Dr. Shawna Aarons-Cooke moderates Blanton-Peale’s first Teal Day Luncheon: Courageous Conversations in Healing on Thursday, October 22, from 12 to 3 p.m. at SECOND NYC in Manhattan, held in conjunction with the institute’s annual Norman Vincent Peale Awards gala that evening. “I believe in the power of community,” she says. “I know that therapy is just one way to support healing and wellness, and wanted to create an opportunity for people to come together explicitly to engage in courageous conversations about healing.”

“I hope that attendees walk away inspired and empowered to live well.”

Dr. Shawna Aarons-Cooke

Her panel of healers will explore healing across the lifespan, finding happiness and joy through stress and loss, a reimagined definition of holistic wellness that integrates culture, identity, mind, body, and community, and navigating a fast-changing digital world. “I hope that attendees walk away inspired and empowered to live well,” she says. “Perhaps there is an idea, strategy, connection, or resource that will make a meaningful difference in their lives.”

The institute’s October calendar opens on World Mental Health Day with A Corner of Community, an afternoon cabaret at Green Room 42 featuring Broadway’s Chryssie Whitehead and friends of In My Own Little Corner Productions, raising support for the Blanton-Peale Artist Mental Health Fund.