TITAN SPOTLIGHT
A Global Perspective
Westminster education takes alumnus to unexpected places By VALENTINE BRKICH ’97
W
hen you’re talking about scuba diving, wintertime in Siberia probably doesn’t come to mind. Unless, that is, you’re Dr. William “Bill” Reay ’78.
Back in 2014-15, Reay was a visiting professor at the Baikal School of International Business-University of Irkutsk, Russia, when he had the opportunity to go cold-water diving in Lake Baikal, the world’s deepest and oldest freshwater lake. “I’ve always loved scuba,” says Reay, who has also gone wreck diving and cave diving in places like Cenote Dos Ojos in Mexico’s Yucatan Peninsula. “So when I had the opportunity to dive under the ice in Baikal, with its freshwater seals and a type of shrimp that exists nowhere else in the world, I jumped at the opportunity.”
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Certainly not your typical diving experience. But, then again, nothing about Reay or his career path has been typical. For over a quarter of a century now, Reay has been a national leader in mental health services and behavioral health services research. He was one of the original developers of the Child and Adolescent Service System Program, which came about in the early 1980s to provide a mental health system of care for children, adolescents, and their families. He was also a founding member of the National Federation for Children’s Mental Health, which organizes parents across the United States to improve mental health care for children. In addition, he served as a professional research member of the US Department of Education’s Evaluation Team for their research and training centers.
