Support Mental Health Promotion in the FY2022 State Budget. DMH 5042-5000 $350,000 According to the CDC, almost 75 percent of people aged 18-24 reported at least one adverse behavioral health symptom due to the impact of COVID-19. The pandemic has also exacerbated existing behavioral health problems among youth. Rates of depression and anxiety among students have spiked and are contributing to already alarming rates of suicide among young people. Teachers are struggling support their students, many of whom they have not yet seen in person, while also grappling with the impact of the pandemic on themselves and their families. Parents and caregivers are experiencing increased behavioral health needs as they cope with financial stress, disrupted routines and, in many cases, grief and loss. As students return to in-person learning, they do so amid a behavioral health crisis of unprecedent proportions, making the demand for effective mental health promotion and suicide prevention resources greater than ever. Our work this year The NAN Project (TNP) is using a range of virtual approaches to bring concrete behavioral health information, tools, and resources to students, school personnel, family members, and community partners, free of charge as capacity allows. This year our team has been enhanced to include bilingual capacity and dedicated outreach and engagement support. Meeting Students’ Needs: ○ Peer Mentors are well trained and supported young people with histories of mental health struggles and experience overcoming adversity. They are uniquely qualified to meet students where they are in their mental health journeys. Peer mentors serve as examples of recovery while offering tools, resources, and supports that students can use to address their own needs. ○ Mental Health Resource Guides and Videos for Students were created to support students during the COVID-19 pandemic. They include helpful tools for managing isolation, loneliness, stress, and anxiety. In addition, students can access videos from professionals and peers presenting strategies and age appropriate tools to manage and prioritize mental health daily and how to access help when needed. Helping the Helper ➢ Teachers: TNP offers resources to support teachers’ mental health and help teachers support their students in the context of virtual learning. ○ TNP Lesson plans are a set of tools for teaching students about self-care, establishing routines, and connectedness. Over a dozen lesson are available for use by ALL educators in the state. ○ Training/Workshops: TNP offers the Question, Persuade, Refer (QPR) suicide prevention training to educators to enhance their knowledge of the signs of mental health needs and suicidal ideation in students and provide them with the skills to intervene before a crisis occurs. TNP also offers webinars and live workshops to help educators and caregivers recognize the challenges of today’s students and provide appropriate responses and resources in the context of COVID-19. ○ Mental Health Resource Guides for Educators/Caregivers provide educators, caregivers, and school personnel with information, resources, and concrete tools to support their own mental health and promote the mental wellbeing of their students. ➢ Frontline workers: Child and Youth serving state agencies are seeing the need for their staff to have increased knowledge of mental health needs and suicide risk in youth and young adults. TNP is providing the QPR suicide prevention training to employees on the frontlines at DMH, DESE, DYS, DCF, and DPH, significantly increasing their capacity to meet the behavioral health needs of the children they serve. Reaching Families and Youth in the Community ➢ TNP Programming in Child and Youth Serving Organizations: In partnership with community-based organizations that serve children and adolescents, TNP offers peer mentor programming to youth, QPR training to adults, and workshops on raising awareness, promoting resilience, and building concrete skills to parents and family members. ➢ Training Family Resource Centers (FRC) Staff: In FY21, TNP was approached by the Everett FRC to provide mental health promotion and suicide prevention training to their staff. In addition to the QPR training, TNP is providing trainings and workshops which are specifically tailored to provide staff with concrete resources and tools to address their own mental health needs and recognize and address stressors and risk factors in the families they serve. Expanding our reach: looking ahead to FY2022 Targeted Expansion into high needs, underserved communities: with a focus on addressing long standing inequities in access to behavioral health resources for young people, TNP is strategically targeting high needs communities for expansion of our programming. Leading this effort are our bilingual peer coordinator whose role is to connect with students and teachers in predominantly Spanish speaking communities and our school outreach coordinator whose role is to provide intentional and comprehensive outreach and connection to historically underserved school districts and students. Expansion of Programming to Family Resources Centers (FRC’s): TNP has begun working with the Everett Family Resource Center to provide training and consultation to staff and to offer mental health promotion and suicide prevention workshops to parents served by the FRCs. Building on the success of this work, we will begin making these services available to FRC’s throughout the state. Our Funding This year just over half TNP funding is from grants and donors. State funding provides the remaining half of which $130,000 is onetime funding. For FY 2022 we are seeking $350,000 in state funding to meet the growing demand for our programing. Let’s talk about Mental Health Promotion and Suicide Prevention. Let’s talk about saving lives. Visit us at thenanproject.org! Contact Ellen Dalton at [email protected] Acton-Boxborough Regional Hamilton-Wenham Regional Phillips Academy High School Hopedale Senior High School Phoenix Academy Lawrence, Andover High School and Phoenix Academy Chelsea Hopkinton High School Arlington High School Pollard Middle School Ipswich High School, Middle Beverly High School, Middle School Reading High School School King Philip High School Revere High School CATS Academy, Braintree Lawrence High School Roosevelt Middle School Chelsea High School Lowell High School Salem Charter Academy Collins Middle School Ludlow High School Salem High School Danvers High School Malden High School Saugus High School Diman Vocational School MAP Academy Stoneham High School Dr. An Wang Middle School Marshall Simonds Middle Swampscott High School, Dracut High School School Middle School East Boston Catholic Central Masconomet Regional Tantasqua High School Everett High School Medford High School The Bromfield School Excel Academy Medway High School Urban Science Academy / West Roxbury Academy Fecteau - Leary Junior Senior Melrose High School Alternative High School Veritas Academy Charter Methuen High School Framingham High School Wakefield High School Milford High School Galvin Middle School Waring School MLK Charter School of Georgetown High School Excellence Westfield High School Gloucester High School New Liberty Innovation School Winchester High School Greater Lawrence Technical North Andover High School Woburn High School High School Old Rochester Regional High As well as college and Greater Lowell Technical High School university undergraduate and School graduate students. Peabody High School To bring The Nan Project to your school or community, contact us at [email protected].