Episode #460 From Newsroom to Policy, With Zack Stoycoff, MPA
- Jun 9
- 5 min read
On This Episode Of The Public Health Epidemiology Conversations (PHEC) Podcast
What does a journalist watching a mother scream for her child outside a burning building have to do with mental health policy? For Zack Stoycoff, MPA, everything. That early morning moment on a street corner in Oklahoma planted a seed that eventually grew into one of the state's most impactful mental health advocacy organizations.
In this episode of the PHEC podcast, Dr. Huntley sits down with Zack Stoycoff, founder and executive director of the Healthy Minds Policy Initiative, a mental health policy think tank based in Oklahoma. Their conversation covers his journey from breaking news reporter to healthcare lobbyist to policy entrepreneur, and what it actually takes to move the needle on mental health outcomes at the state and community level.
From Commerce to Community
Before launching Healthy Minds Policy Initiative, Zack spent years working in healthcare policy and advocacy at the Tulsa Regional Chamber of Commerce, one of the largest chambers in the state. That experience gave him a front-row seat to how mental health policy intersected, and often collided, with business and economic interests. He saw firsthand that the loudest voices shaping health policy did not always represent the people most affected by it, and that gap became the foundation for his next chapter.
Building Bipartisan Support in a Divided Time
One of the most compelling threads in this conversation is how Zack and his team have built bipartisan support for mental health policy in what many would describe as one of the most politically fractured eras in recent memory. His answer is both simple and instructive: lead with the human story, not the political argument. When the conversation centers on children and families rather than funding battles or party platforms, something shifts. People remember they are talking to other people.
Dr. Huntley draws a meaningful parallel to her own experience facilitating policy conversations with state legislators, where connecting on a human level proved far more powerful than debating line items. This episode explores what that really looks like in practice, and how advocates in any issue area can apply the same approach.
Community-Led Solutions and Real Wins
Zack speaks to the work Healthy Minds Policy Initiative does at both the local and state level, including community needs assessments, coalition building, and legislative advocacy. He shares examples of communities that came to the table with their own solutions, and how his organization's role has been to provide partnership, resources, and staying power rather than to impose an agenda from the outside. The wins he describes reflect what sustainable systems change can look like when communities are genuinely in the lead.
About Our Guest
Zack Stoycoff, MPA
Zack Stoycoff is the founder and executive director of the Healthy Minds Policy Initiative, a mental health policy think tank based in Oklahoma. His organization works at the local, state, and federal levels to transform mental health systems through policy development, legislative advocacy, and community coalition building. Before founding Healthy Minds Policy Initiative, Zack served as Vice President of Healthcare Policy at the Tulsa Regional Chamber of Commerce, where he led lobbying and advocacy efforts on behalf of business and healthcare interests in Oklahoma. His career began in journalism, where he covered crime and community affairs, an experience that shaped his deep commitment to the human stories behind public health challenges. Zack holds a Master of Public Administration (MPA).
Listen To This Episode Of The Public Health Epidemiology Conversations (PHEC) Podcast
Conversation Highlights
A defining moment can reframe an entire career.
Zack's pivot toward policy work traces back to a single morning as a journalist when the human cost of a community health crisis became impossible to ignore. Authentic motivation often starts with witnessing something that refuses to leave you.
Mental health policy benefits from fewer financial gatekeepers.
Unlike other healthcare arenas, mental health policy has historically attracted fewer powerful financial interests, which creates unusual space for community voices and independent organizations to shape the conversation.
Bipartisan progress is possible when you lead with shared humanity.
Zack's team has found consistent traction across party lines by centering children, families, and lived experience rather than funding arguments. The most durable policy wins tend to start with a conversation that doesn't feel political at all.
Community-led solutions outperform outside-driven interventions.
Real change happens when organizations support communities in implementing their own solutions rather than arriving with a predetermined plan. Healthy Minds Policy Initiative intentionally structures its work around partnership, not prescription.
Coalition building is a long game worth playing.
Sustained policy change requires relationships built before a crisis hits. Zack's work illustrates how consistent presence at the local and state level creates the trust necessary to pass legislation and shift systems over time.
Diverse career backgrounds are assets in public health work.
Zack's path through journalism, chamber advocacy, and healthcare lobbying gave him skills and perspectives that a traditional policy career might not have. The field benefits from professionals who bring outside-in thinking to complex problems.
"I look over and there's a woman screaming and crying with her knees on the ground. And she's looking at this apartment complex and she says, my baby, my baby is in there. That was the moment I think where I realized this is real. This is not just a story I get to write. This is something that is really plaguing our community. This isn't okay." - Zack Stoycoff
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DrCHHuntley LLC is a public health consulting firm that specializes in epidemiology consulting, supporting large nonprofit organizations in South Carolina, North Carolina, Georgia, Mississippi, and Florida that serve Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC). We also provide nationwide public health consulting and epidemiology consulting support to BIPOC organizations across the United States.
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