National Center for Mental Health Promotion and Youth Violence Prevention

SS/HS New Grantee Meeting and Webinar Series
From December 11–13, 2007, Project Directors and Superintendents from the new 2007 SS/HS cohort were introduced to the Federal Project Officers, Technical Assistance Specialists, and the Communications Team at the New Grantee Meeting in Washington, D.C. Meeting materials are available at https://learn.aero.und.edu/pages.asp?PageID=110666.

As a follow up to this meeting, the National Center and Federal Project Officers will conduct an SS/HS Webinar series on the following topics:

Invitations will be sent out to 2007 SS/HS Grantees shortly.

Communicating Evaluation Data for Sustainability
This PowerPoint, originally presented by the Communications Team at the November 2007 sustainability conference for the ’05 SS/HS Grantees in Denver, Colorado, outlines the complementary connection between evaluation and communications. Beginning with a brief review of communications principles, the presentation illustrates how, as human beings, we tend to respond more to a well-told story than to a straightforward recitation of facts. It provides guidance to SS/HS Grantees on how to frame their own data in the context of the larger, more “human” story of their initiative's good work when communicating to potential partners for sustainability and offers examples of SS/HS initiatives that have successfully sustained key functions in this way. The presentation can be viewed at http://www.sshs.samhsa.gov/communications/Institute/default.aspx.

Restorative Justice Teleconference
On November 27, 2007, the National Center hosted a teleconference on restorative justice, which is an innovative alternative to traditional disciplinary action in schools. Restorative practices involve a whole school approach and are built on the components of restitution, resolution, and reconciliation. During the teleconference, presenters described and shared their experiences with different restorative practices. PowerPoint presentations and other materials used during the teleconference are available at http://www.promoteprevent.org/events/center-events/#restorative_justice. A recording of the entire discussion will be available shortly.

SS/HS Project Directors’ Consortia Meeting
The 2004, 2005, and 2006 SS/HS Project Directors, along with local evaluators from the FY 2006 cohort, are invited to attend the Project Directors’ Consortia Meeting to be held in Albuquerque, New Mexico, January 29–30, 2008. This two-day meeting will focus on specific topics and issues identified by grantees and will provide opportunities for participants to meet with other Project Directors in small groups and to work with Technical Assistance Specialist (TAS) staff. For more information on this meeting, please contact your TAS.

New Evidence-Based Intervention (EBI) Fact Sheet: DARE to be You
The National Center has released a new EBI Fact Sheet on DARE to be You, a multilevel school, parent, and community program aimed at children ages 2 to 5 and their families. The program is designed to increase parenting efficacy; provide training for child caregivers; and enhance children’s self-esteem and communication and problem-solving skills. The Fact Sheet is available at http://www.promoteprevent.org/Publications/EBI-factsheets/daretobeyou.pdf.

All EBI Fact Sheets published by the National Center contain information to help grantees research and select programs to implement in their sites. The Fact Sheets, available at http://www.promoteprevent.org/Publications/EBI-factsheets, include program descriptions and discuss target audiences, available adaptations to special populations, training and technical assistance from the developers, program costs, evaluation results, and agency or institution recognition.

The following is a summary of key findings from the fields of education, mental health, violence prevention, and/or youth substance abuse prevention.

Recommendations to Mediate the Effects of Exposure to Violence on Adolescents
Research demonstrates that witnessing or being a victim of family or community violence can result in long-term effects on the mental health and behavior of adolescents. These effects include depression, anxiety, academic problems, substance abuse, and high-risk sexual behavior. Youth exposed to violence are also at increased risk of placement in special education programs, child welfare agencies, and juvenile justice programs. Exposure to violence disproportionately affects adolescents in African American and other minority communities.

Based on his analysis of the research, Dexter Volsin of the University of Chicago School of Social Service Administration made a number of recommendations for practices that can help young people cope with the effects of exposure to family and community violence. While these recommendations were primarily directed at social workers, they are pertinent to other professionals and organizations working with youth at increased risk for exposure to violence. The recommendations extend those made in Report of the Surgeon General’s Conference on Children’s Mental Health: A National Action Agenda (2000). Volsin recommended the following:

For more information on these issues, see “The Effects of Family and Community Violence Exposure Among Youth: Recommendations for Practice and Policy,” by Dexter R. Voisin, in the Winter 2007 issue of the Journal of Social Work (Vol. 43, No. 1).

This section highlights a few updates from the prevention field. Please go to http://library.promoteprevent.org for more news items and resources.

Promotion and Prevention in Mental Health
SAMHSA’s Center for Mental Health Services recently released a new report on the effectiveness of programs that focus on the promotion of mental well-being and prevention of mental health problems of children and their parents or other caregivers. Findings show that such focused efforts are beneficial because many diagnosable mental illnesses begin by age 14 and early promotion and prevention increase the likelihood that problems in children are addressed early on, before the problems can evolve into mental illnesses. The report describes evidence-based programs that strengthen the caretaking skills of parents and enhance child resilience while also offering suggestions on how families can best be reached with these interventions. The report is available at http://mentalhealth.samhsa.gov/publications/allpubs/svp%2D0186.

Youth Violence Through Electronic Media: What It Means for Parents and Schools
This supplement to the December 2007 issue of the Journal of Adolescent Health contains a series of studies that examine the risk of adolescent peer aggression through electronic media (e.g., instant messaging, chat rooms, blogs, and text messaging) as an emerging public health problem. The articles explore Internet bullying and online harassment along with implications for school intervention. They include precautions that can be taken by schools and families, such as developing and implementing plans that support the reporting of electronic aggression incidents and actions to take when these incidents occur. All articles in this supplement can be accessed for free at http://journals.elsevierhealth.com/periodicals/jah/content/suppl07.

Community Service as an Alternative to Suspension
The Community Service Options Toolkit, developed by Smith Prevention Initiatives in Arizona, is designed to serve as a reference for schools, school districts, or community agencies looking to use community service programs as part of their disciplinary strategies. The Toolkit presents community service as a win-win alternative to suspension where youth have opportunities to learn a variety of skills while giving back to the community. It provides educators with step-by-step guidance through the processes of planning and implementing community service as part of alternatives to suspension in their school districts. The Toolkit can be found at http://serviceoptions.org/toolkit.html.

January 2008 is the fifth annual National Mentoring Month. This campaign, spearheaded by the Harvard Mentoring Project, MENTOR, and the Corporation for National and Community Service, is a month-long outreach campaign that calls attention to the need for mentors to assure brighter futures for young people by providing them encouragement and support. The campaign draws attention to mentoring programs that create links between volunteers and youth in need of mentors. It also encourages individuals to take the time to thank their mentors and then consider becoming mentors themselves. More information about National Mentoring Month is available at http://www.mentoring.org/mentoring_month. Visitors to this site will find information on mentoring activities in their states during National Mentoring Month.

The Grant Opportunities page is updated regularly with announcements of current public and private grant competitions. Here is one of the listings you will find:

Title: Young Men at Risk: Transforming the Power of a Generation
Funder: Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF) and Changemakers
Description: This competition seeks “to identify the most innovative approaches to help young men ages 15 to 25 fulfill their potential and become healthy, successful adults. From dancing as means to address domestic violence to using music to promote improved mental health, an increasing number of programs are finding new ways to meet pressing societal problems faced by today's young men.” According to the grant announcement, “young men are increasingly at risk of suffering from societal problems of gangs, addiction, crime, violence and mental health problems. These challenges are often the greatest for young men of color in the United States where traditional education, juvenile justice system and health care system are not consistently providing them with the support they need to develop successful adult lives.”
Award: Three winners will receive $5,000 each from Changemakers, with selected entrants invited to submit applications for up to $1 million in funding from RWJF's Vulnerable Populations program.
Eligibility: Nonprofits, private companies, government agencies, and others in the United States and internationally may apply for funding.
Deadline: January 23, 2008
For more information: http://www.rwjf.org/applications/solicited/cfp.jsp?ID=20121&c=EMC-FA144

We regularly add to a detailed listing of conferences and events occurring within the National Center and across the nation. For example,

Date: March 17–19, 2008
Location: Denver, Colorado
Title: Blueprints Conference
Sponsor: Blueprints for Violence Prevention at the Center for the Study and Prevention of Violence
Description: The goal of the conference is to disseminate science-based information on youth violence, delinquency, and drug prevention programs that are effective. This conference will motivate the prevention field to adopt evidence-based programs and provide support, guidance, and tools by program experts to help practitioners implement these programs successfully in their own communities.
Web site: http://www.blueprintsconference.com

Please visit the Events and Opportunities page at http://www.promoteprevent.org/events for a complete listing.