Head of Boulder nonprofit Mental Health Partners abruptly departs Agency mum on reason for exit
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- Mar 16, 2018
- 2 min read
By Shay Castle Staff Writer
POSTED: 03/16/2018 03:29:01 PM MDT
The chief executive officer of Boulder-based Mental Health Partners left the agency abruptly this week.
A spokesperson for the nonprofit confirmed the departure of CEO Kelly Phillips-Henry, but declined to discuss why she left, and whether her departure was voluntary of involuntary.
Marketing Director Kristina Shaw said, "(Kelly) is a respected leader in the mental health community. During any time of transition, there is a lot of speculation."
The nonprofit, with nearly 800 employees, is one of the largest providers of mental health services in the region. Established in 1962, MHP served 22,000 people in 2016, according to its website. The nonprofit has locations throughout Boulder County and Broomfield.
Phillips-Henry did not respond to requests for comment left on her work phone and email, though it is unclear if she received those messages.
She joined MHP in January 2015, after six years at Colorado Springs' AspenPointe, a nonprofit providing mental health services. She was also a major and clinical psychologist with the United States Air Force from 1995-2006; president of Colorado Behavioral Healthcare Council and a board member of the national organization MHCA.
CBHC's chief executive, Doyle Forrestal, learned of Phillips-Henry's leaving on Wednesday, news which she said came as a "shock." "It was very sudden from our perspective," she said. "The board meetings we had (Thursday), her name was still on the agenda." Forrestal said she had no official details of what happened, only "conjecture (and) what filters up to the grapevine."
On the MHP website, links to a release announcing Phillips-Henry's hiring and to her bio on the staff page displayed an error message, though archived versions of the pages were available through the Internet Archive.
MHP board member and chair-elect Hans Wiik will serve as interim CEO.
In 2015, MHP reported revenue of $43.37 million, according to publicly available tax filings, with 762 employees. Phillips-Henry was paid $253,812 for the year, an increase of $28,642 over her predecessor, Barbara Ryan, who retired after 11 years in the role.
In its official statement, MHP wrote, "Kelly provided exceptional leadership through challenging times. We cannot thank Kelly enough for the dedication, passion, enthusiasm and commitment she has given MHP over the past three years. She will be greatly missed by the staff, board, members and partners alike."
Editor's note: An earlier version of this story incorrectly stated that Hans Wiik previously served as MHP's COO and CEO.
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