Boris Lawrence Henson Foundation

What it is

The Boris Lawrence Henson Foundation is a national nonprofit established in 2018 to serve Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC) and underrepresented communities with mental health and wellness support. The organization was created to honor Boris Lawrence Henson, the father of founder Taraji P. Henson, who experienced mental health challenges without adequate support. As a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, the Foundation operates a network of licensed clinicians, therapists, wellness practitioners, and community partners focused on providing culturally relevant care. Its stated mission is to "create innovative healing approaches in BIPOC and underrepresented communities" and to "normalize and improve access to mental health and wellness services."

How care works and what you get

The Foundation's primary offering is free mental health support through its core program: five free therapy sessions with licensed clinicians, available to anyone navigating life changes, everyday struggles, or when stress, anxiety, depression, or hopelessness become overwhelming. The site describes these clinicians as "ready to provide culturally relevant care." The Foundation does not specify the typical length of sessions or whether all five must be used consecutively or can be spread over time, but the sessions are explicitly framed as tailored support.

Beyond one-on-one therapy, the Foundation operates a find-a-therapist tool called the "Let's Talk! Resource Guide," described as "a comprehensive directory of mental health providers and alternative wellness modalities created to meet members of BIPOC and underrepresented communities." This directory helps users locate providers "who understand your unique experiences."

The Foundation also runs school-based programs called the Take A Minute Challenge, a 30-day mental wellness initiative designed to give students "a few intentional minutes each day to pause, breathe, reflect, and reconnect with themselves and one another." These are three-minute moments of care built into school communities by the Foundation. It is not a direct service to individuals but rather a program delivered through schools.

Additional programming includes Hangouts, which the site describes as transformative connections through "Psychoeducational Hangouts for supportive conversations addressing a wide range of mental health topics." The Foundation also offers "Integrated Wellness Hangouts, featuring practices like yoga and meditation" and "traditional African-centered practices like dance and drumming to connect the body and spirit to ancestral roots." The site also mentions "Joy Pop-Up Salons, where community and mental health resources converge."

Wellness Wednesdays is a monthly program bringing "integrative wellness and psychoeducational Hangouts to HBCU campuses nationwide," targeted at college students. The Foundation has also created wellness pods, described as "innovative structures" placed on HBCU campuses to bring "hassle-free access to mental health resources to non-traditional spaces."

For practitioners and educators, the Foundation offers African American Cultural Humility Training designed to help providers "deepen understanding of the unique worldview and experiences of BIPOC individuals" and to "develop the ability to recognize and address cultural blind spots." It also offers a program called The Unspoken Curriculum, which focuses on how students perceive themselves and others through the lens of educational environments.

What the pages publish

The Foundation does not publish pricing for its core therapy sessions; they are described simply as free. The site does not mention insurance acceptance or co-pay structures. It does not publish wait times, appointment availability, or response times for accessing the free sessions.

The site names that licensed clinicians deliver the free therapy but does not specify credential types (LCSW, LMFT, LPC, PhD, MD, PMHNP, or board certifications). It states the care is "culturally relevant" but does not publish case studies, clinical outcomes, or research validating the approach.

The Foundation emphasizes its mission to increase therapist diversity: it runs a scholarship fund for "aspiring minority mental health professionals," noting that statistics show "85% are white, while only 4% are Black" in the psychology workforce. The site does not publish how many scholarships it awards annually, the size of awards, or acceptance criteria.

The service area is described as national based on references to "HBCU campuses nationwide," but the site does not specify the exact geographic scope for the free therapy sessions or the therapist directory.

What the pages do not say

The site does not explain how to access the free sessions: whether there is a waitlist, how long enrollment takes, or what the application or sign-up process looks like. It does not specify whether matching is automated or done by a staff member, nor does it explain what happens after the five free sessions end. Does the Foundation help connect people to ongoing care, or is it an introductory service only?

The site does not detail what happens if you need crisis support. It includes the 988 suicide and crisis lifeline number and lists a main phone number, (213) 222-6327, but does not explain whether the Foundation itself operates crisis counseling or merely refers people to 988.

The therapist directory on its own site mentions that providers "practice cultural humility" but does not state whether all listed providers are clinicians, whether some are peer supporters or wellness practitioners, or what credentials qualify someone to be listed.

The site does not publish the number of therapists in its network, the number of therapy sessions delivered annually, or any other metric of scale or reach.

Who it fits and who it doesn't

This service is explicitly designed for BIPOC and underrepresented communities lacking "trusted mental health and wellness support systems." Someone who has experienced cultural bias in previous mental health care, or who wants a therapist with lived experience in their own community, is the stated target. The free sessions remove the financial barrier for someone without insurance or unable to afford out-of-pocket therapy. Someone seeking support specifically from culturally grounded approaches like African-centered wellness practices will find those through the Foundation's Hangouts and wellness programs.

The five free sessions are an introduction to care, not ongoing treatment. Someone needing long-term therapy will need to connect with ongoing providers after the free sessions end. The site does not make clear whether the Foundation facilitates that transition. Someone in crisis who needs immediate support should use the 988 lifeline; the Foundation is not described as a crisis service. Someone seeking specific modalities like medication management should note that the site does not mention psychiatric services or prescribing providers. Someone seeking teletherapy, phone, text, or in-person care will find those options referenced but without specifics on which are available to whom. Someone outside BIPOC or underrepresented communities is not the stated audience, though the site does not explicitly exclude them. Someone in a state without HBCU campus programs or wellness pods may need to access the therapy through the find-a-therapist directory rather than through direct programs.