Friday, January 28, 2011

January Member of the Month: Lee Carlson Center for Mental Health & Well-Being

Does the name Central Center for Family Resources ring a bell? How about Lee Carlson Center for Mental Health & Well-Being? Whether you call them by their former name or their current name, both are synonymous with exceptional and affordable services for families, children, youth, and adults in our community. I (Rachel) recently spent part of my afternoon with Patty Halvorson, Lee Carlson’s Marketing and Development Manager and a recipient of YIPA's 2010 Friends of Youth Leadership Award for Innovative Funding. The third Friday of each month, Lee Carlson Center hosts a “Lunch & Learn Tour,” where participants can meet staff, volunteers, board members and someone directly impacted by their services. I took part in this month’s “Lunch & Learn Tour” and could not believe all the phenomenal ways they are boosting the health and wellness of our communities.

Lee Carlson Center for Mental Health & Well Being has a Youth Intervention Program that offers an early intervention Peer Support Program onsite at schools in Anoka County. This program addresses a significant gap in how our community supports the healthy development of youth. As a prevention and early intervention program, their services reach youth before a crisis occurs (e.g. violence against oneself or another) or before the youth's behaviors lead to interactions with the juvenile justice system. This program works with youth who are beginning to engage in behaviors that are of concern to parents and teachers. These behaviors range from depression to truancy to shoplifting and vandalism to self-cutting to experimenting with alcohol and other substances. At the high school level, many of the students are self-referred: They know they are struggling and they want a better and healthier life. Most of the youth participating in the School-based Peer Support Program are from families living in or near poverty. Consequently, families are not charged for services provided. Therefore, the Lee Carlson Center must rely on community support to be able to reach and work with at least 300 students each school year.

Regardless of the specific behavior, most often what these youth need is a supportive environment with someone guiding them in exploring feelings and in developing positive decision making skills. This program provides that needed support. Conducting the program onsite at the school allows the services to be fully integrated into the student's day-to-day lives. They know their School-based Peer Support Program changes the lives of youth because at the end of each school year, the majority of participating youth report improvements in their behaviors. This includes improved relationships with peers, parents and authority figures, as well as being better able to stay on task (e.g. completing school work) and having greater self-esteem. Parents and teachers concur with the reports from youth. The program most recently received an 'outstanding' rating from the Minnesota Department of Public Safety Youth Intervention Program.

Aside, from the School-based Peer Support Program, the Lee Carlson Center offers an array of services including, but not limited to: marriage and family counseling, play therapy for children, parenting classes and bariatric psychological assessments. There are three convenient locations for services – Fridley, Blaine and Spring Lake Park. Although each site does slightly different work, they all strive to reach lower income clients and pride themselves on being the only organization in the northern suburbs that provides mental health services for all age groups. For more information, I would highly encourage you to attend a Lunch & Learn Tour, or if you’ve got time on April 9th, head to Anoka High School to take part in Anoka County’s Got Talent, a fundraising event you wouldn’t want to miss! Click here to become a fan of their facebook page, and show your support for youth and families struggling with emotional and behavioral issues.

Monday, January 17, 2011

2011 Update on the Legislature by Executive Director, Scott Beaty

Wow! What two years will do in the ever-changing political world! Not only has the
Federal political landscape changed but so has Minnesota’s!

Minnesota is facing a $6.2 billion deficit, and after many years of budget deficits there is no low hanging fruit. This means cuts to government supported programs will be deep and sharp even if the Governor and Legislature can come to some agreement on raising revenues. In order to keep the Youth Intervention Program and other youth programming from being severely reduced or eliminated we all have our work cut out for us. It is critical that we educate legislators about the proven benefits of early intervention programs.

The first thing I want all of you to know is that this is probably going to be the toughest legislative session we will have since former Governor Ventura tried to eliminate the Youth Intervention Program. The YIPA membership fought hard and strong that session and we were able to save the program but with a reduction in funding. Since that time we have been able to increase the funding only to have it reduced the next biennium because of deficits within the State budget. I can’t stress enough how important it is going to be for the YIPA membership to contact their legislators (email works but a personal phone call or face to face meeting is better) and ask them to support the Youth Intervention Program by ensuring that the current base funding of $1.6 million per year be maintained. Remember, the Youth Intervention Program Social Return on Investment (SROI) is our best ally and every legislator you meet with should get a copy of this report with you highlighting the cost savings the research has found. We will soon be getting the YIP outcome data from the Office of Justice Program within Public Safety and this too can be a tool you can and should use to show legislators that not only does the YIP save money but it has measurable results. If you are unsure who are your State legislators, click here.

Another important action I hope everyone reading this takes is to plan to attend the Rally for Youth Day at the Capitol on Thursday, March 3. This is the time for you and your constituents (your youth) to be in St. Paul talking with your legislators about the importance of the youth intervention program in your community. The Youth Rally Day is sponsored by the Youth Policy Alliance. Click here for an application to participate in this event. If you have taken part in the rally in the past, you will notice a couple changes that have been made for the 2011 rally. The first major change is that participants will not be meeting at the Kelly Inn for pre-rally training; instead, rally preparations will be communicated to adult leaders through live webinar and it is the responsibility of those leaders to disseminate this information to their youth. Applicant deadline to participate in the rally is January 21. Even if you cannot bring a group of youth to the event, I hope you will attend the noon rally and plan to meet with your legislators.

Remember, the world is run by those who show up!

Friday, January 7, 2011

Rally for Youth Reminder: 3-3-2011

Happy New Year, everyone! From all of us at MN YIPA, we hope 2010 ended on a positive note, and that you’re as enthused as we are to begin fresh in 2011! We’re taking part in planning some really exciting events this year, including but not limited to the 2011 Rally for Youth Day at the Capitol! By now, all YIPA members and other youth-serving organizations across the state of Minnesota should have received the application materials needed to participate in this event. If you haven’t, feel free to check out the Mentoring Partnership of Minnesota’s website to download the materials. And again, if you have any questions now or at any time before the event on March 3, 2011, do not hesitate to be in touch with a representative at any of the Youth Policy Alliance (YPA) organizations.

If you have taken part in the rally in the past, you will notice a couple changes that have been made for the 2011 rally. The first major change is that participants will not be meeting at the Kelly Inn for pre-rally training; instead, rally preparations will be communicated to adult leaders through live webinar and it is the responsibility of those leaders to disseminate this information to their youth. The second major change is that applicants are given three options for ways to arrange meetings with legislators:
1. Arrange the meeting on your own. This option is for those who have personal relationships established with their legislators and would prefer working directly with them as opposed to using an intermediary.

2. Arranging your own meeting with legislators with assistance from the rally committee. This option is for those who are confident they will be able to organize a meeting with a little guidance from experts.

3. Have the meeting arranged for you. This option is for constituents who may not be familiar with their legislators and would feel more confident and conformable having an intermediary contact their legislator and plan their meeting.

Some important information to remember:

January 21, 2011 – All applications are due

Mailed or emailed applications can be sent to:
Lindsey Carlson * Attn: Rally for Youth
7350 Chesham Lane
Woodbury, MN 55125
Lindsey.carlson08@gmail.com

Faxed applications can be sent to:
Carolyn Herman * HIRED
Attn: Rally for Youth
651-999-5641

January 28, 2011 – Rally applicants will be notified of acceptance

February 9, 2011 – Live webinar to prepare adult leaders will be streamed from 2pm-1pm.

Additionally, there will be an informational video available during the month of February, which will highlight youth who have personal experience utilizing services in the six focus areas of the rally: Homelessness Prevention, Mentoring, Out-of-School Time, Youth Intervention, Workforce Development and Juvenile Justice. We are still looking for youth with experience in these core areas, who are able and willing to share their story both in video form, and at the actual event at the Capitol on March 3, 2011. If you are connected with youth who feel confident sharing their experiences with others, feel free to email me (Rachel) at promisefellow@mnyipa.org or leave a comment on this blog.

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