On Tuesday, September 13, 2011, at a regular session of the Commissioners Court, Nacogdoches County Judge Joe English was appointed to serve on the Burke Center Board replacing retired member Dr. Nancy Speck. Judge English is a 1991 graduate of the Angelina nursing program, which included a semester of clinical rotation in psychiatric nursing at the Rusk State Hospital. In 2008, he was appointed to the Nacogdoches County Rural East Texas Health Network, a group of community leaders meeting to address mental health issues within Nacogdoches County.
Judge English, along with the 12 County Judges in DETCOG, Hospital Administrators, and Burke Center administration formed a regional coalition to establish a Mental Health Crisis Center to address the immediate needs of patients in crises. The center, located in Lufkin, treated 168 residents of Nacogdoches County this last year.
Most recently Judge English lead a team of local leaders which included the Mayor, Hospital Administrators, and members from the Burke Center to Austin to rally the State legislation to not cut State funding for the mentally ill in Nacogdoches County.
Judge English is quoted as saying he believes “Mental health disorders are a serious public health concern to our community and is widely misunderstood by society. Even though doctors and researchers have made huge strides in their understanding and treatment of mental health disorders, we all still have much more to do”.
