Carissa Johnson found her calling early. She knew that she wanted to help people, and that the most challenging place was in nonprofit organizations.
“I love the nonprofit world,” says Carissa Johnson, “whether it’s going for a goal and raising money or just raising awareness.”
Johnson, who has a bachelor’s degree in psychology and a master’s in nonprofit management, now serves as the director of operations at Project 375, a nonprofit passionately dedicated to raising awareness about mental health issues.
Founded by Brandon Marshall, one of the best wide receivers in football history, the organization’s mission is to provide behavioral and mental health care when and where it is needed most.
Founders: Brandon Marshall and Michi Marshall
Year founded: 2011
Employees: 3
Where we’re based: WeWork Chelsea
Moment of inspiration: “Just having a background in psychology, I’ve always been interested in the mind and hearing people talk about what’s going on up there,” says Johnson. “After talking to my friends and the founders of Project 375, it just clicked, and I knew it was perfect.”
Biggest hurdle: “The stigma surrounding mental health has been the biggest hurdle for us,” says Johnson. “It’s hard to get it across to people that it’s okay to live with depression, and that you’re still normal. It’s a disease just like cancer, and getting people and the community to understand that is difficult.”
How we want to change the world: Johnson says she wants to “paint the world lime green,” a color that has come to symbolize issues around mental illness. “We want people to know about and understand what it means to have a mental disorder,” says Johnson. “We want it to be a worldwide, simple conversation without the stigma attached to it.”