Cindy Herrick

About Me

Cindy Lee Herrick is a mom, teacher, musician, mental health advocate, researcher and entrepreneur. Although currently residing in Scottsdale, Arizona, Cindy is a Los Angeles native with Taiwanese roots, she received her BS in Business Administration from the University of Southern California and her MA in Special Education (with an emphasis on autism spectrum disorders) from Arizona State University.

During her harrowing experience with severe maternal mental illness, Cindy vowed that IF she survived the experience, she would dedicate herself to filling the gaps in maternal mental health care. Today, she feels fortunate to be a survivor of MMH illness and has followed through with her vow to be a passionate maternal mental health advocate. She is currently the Partnerships and Engagement Manager for the Maternal Mental Health Research Collaborative. Cindy is also an Ambassador and partner engagement lead for 2020 Mom, a nonprofit organization focused on closing gaps in maternal mental health care through education, advocacy, and collaboration. Cindy was also the first Warrior Mom Ambassador in Arizona for Postpartum Progress, which closed in 2017. Cindy has advocated and represented the peer and patient voice at various maternal mental health and postpartum depression advisory boards. Cindy chronicled her MMH experiences in the book A Dark Secret, which was published in 2016. Most recently, she was featured in an PPD investigative article for The Development Set at Medium.com.

Cindy was an Instructor at Arizona State University, where she has facilitated numerous graduate courses on Autism Spectrum Disorders. Her research has been published in the Education and Training in Autism and Developmental Disabilities journal and she was a contributing author in the book Autism from the Teacher’s Perspective. She is a board member for Kids with Autism Can, a nonprofit organization in Scottsdale, Arizona, focusing on fostering independence for kids on the autism spectrum.

In addition to her non-profit work, Cindy founded Cindy Lee Studios LLC in 2007. Having taught piano since 2003, she identified a lack of music studios specifically trained to teach students with special needs. Thus, Cindy Lee Studios was created to meet the individualized needs of both neurotypical and special needs students. Cindy received her classical piano performance training at The Colburn School of Performing Arts in Los Angeles.

Job Title: Manager, Partnerships and Engagement

Company: Maternal Mental Health Research Collaborative