Your donation is making a difference right now.
NAMI-NYC: Ending the Silence
One of the accomplishments we are most proud of over the past year has been our continuing our efforts to overcome the stigma of mental illness with our partners at NAMI-NYC.
Ending the Silence, one of their core anti-stigma programs, continued to thrive and be well-received throughout New York City. Because of your support, this vital program has experienced some exciting developments over the grant year that will help ensure its long-term growth and sustainability. Notably, you enabled NAMI-NYC to hire their first Community Education Coordinator to oversee Ending the Silence, increasing its effectiveness and the scope of its outreach.
Ending the Silence presentations take place in schools throughout New York City. Two NAMI-NYC leaders present the program at one educational establishment and then travel to the next. One presenter talks about overarching mental health issues and how to reduce stigma. The second presenter is a young adult with a mental health condition who shares their personal story and their journey of recovery. Having a young adult as a presenter is critical to keeping the content relatable and their lived experience with mental illness establishes them as a credible messenger. Through this forum, they work to end the stigma and shame of mental illness among young people. During the grant year, NAMI-NYC recruited 19 young adult presenters for our Ending the Silence program for middle and high school students, parents, and staff.
In fiscal year 2023, NAMI-NYC conducted 83 presentations, reaching 4,712 individuals in various educational settings, exceeding the initial goal of 80 presentations and 2,168 attendees by 104% and 218%, respectively.
Learn more about this important program from NAMI-NYC here
Bethel CT Schools:
teen Mental Health First Aid
Your donations have allowed the Bethel, CT School District the opportunity to set up two programs: teen Mental Health First Aid training (high school juniors) and Youth Mental Health First Aid for adults over the age of 18.
In addition to funding the certification of two adults in the district through the Mental Health First Aid.organization, the grant allowed Bethel Schools to:
Offer 3 Youth Mental Health First Aid workshops last year
Certify 33 adults in the Bethel community in Youth Mental Health First Aid
Purchase the participant materials for the three adult workshops held throughout last year
Purchase participant materials for the upcoming teen Mental Health First Aid workshops scheduled to be offered at Bethel High School this Fall and Spring.
295 students will receive Teen Mental Health First Aid Training this year.
This level of outreach would not be possible without you.
In the upcoming school year, Bethel Schools will continue to explore additional avenues for reaching both teens and adults regarding teen mental health. They hope to offer a blended version of the Youth Mental Health First Aid program for adults as it is easier for them to complete the course this way given their hectic schedules and multiple responsibilities. They are considering ways of bringing mental health awareness to other schools in the district.