Child Health and Development Institute - CHDI

Connecticut's Urgent Crisis Centers (UCCs) - walk-in clinics for youth experiencing behavioral health crises - have successfully diverted more than a thousand kids from emergency rooms since opening in 2023. But with federal funding expiring this fall and final state budget discussions ongoing, the centers' long-term sustainability remains uncertain.

Learn more in this CTNewsJu**ie article featuring interviews with UCC providers Wellmore Behavioral Health and The Village for Families & Children + citing CHDI data analysis: https://loom.ly/mLSJecc

Thanks to CT News Ju**ie for their continued coverage of children's behavioral health issues in Connecticut!

Urgent Crisis Centers Concerned About Future Funding | CT News Ju**ie Those in charge of overseeing the state’s Urgent Crisis Centers — which focus on youth mental health services — are concerned about future funding now that money provided through the American Rescue Plan Act is starting to run out.

Urgent Crisis Centers Concerned About Future Funding | CT News Ju**ie Those in charge of overseeing the state’s Urgent Crisis Centers — which focus on youth mental health services — are concerned about future funding now that money provided through the American Rescue Plan Act is starting to run out.

This July, we’re joining Mental Health America in honoring the memory of Bebe Moore Campbell, a mental health advocate who worked to shed light on the mental health needs of the Black community and other underrepresented communities.

➡️Learn more about Bebe Moore Campbell and find resources on the MHA website: mhanational.org/july

CHDI President & CEO Jeff Vanderploeg had a chance to catch up with longtime partner Tammy Freeberg of The Village for Families & Children and Michelle Zabel of Innovations Institute, our hosts for the !

Events like this are not only critical for professional development - they also remind us of the power of partnership and collective action. None of us can achieve our missions alone, but together, we CAN build a world where all .

Thanks again to Innovations for organizing this week's conference. 🙌 Our team is returning to CT energized!

CHDI's school mental health team was busy at the ! Their sessions this week included:

🏫Lessons learned from ten years of Connecting to Care CT, Connecticut's statewide effort to develop a more integrated system of care for children's behavioral health, with partners from FAVOR, Inc., Carelon Behavioral Health, CT Department of Children and Families, and The Consultation Center at Yale

🏫Reducing exclusionary discipline through restorative practices in schools, with partners Kris Wraight and Gretchen Kelly (learn more about restorative practices in our recent Issue Brief: https://loom.ly/JND5ngo)

🏫A lunchtime discussion on using data to strengthen school mental health services

Another highlight from was a workshop on trauma screening by CHDI's Jason Lang and Kellie Randall with FAVOR, Inc.'s Lisa Girard. They shared best practices for using a family-centered approach to screening in any child-serving setting. The workshop was focused on child-serving professionals without a clinical background, who can play a critical role in expanding access to trauma screening.

✨Missed this session? No worries! It was based on CHDI's Trauma ScreenTIME courses, all available FREE online to any child-serving professional nationwide. Link in comments ⬇️

CHDI's Yecenia Casiano got to meet (and hug!) America's most beloved blue monster at ! 🤩

Cookie Monster stopped by along with Dr. Jeanette Betancourt of Sesame Workshop, who is discussing evidence-based strategies to support children's well-being and resilience in today's lunchtime plenary session (where we hope they're keeping a close eye on the cookies!).



Innovations Institute

Kicking off day 2 of the , CHDI's Aleece Kelly and colleagues from CT Department of Children and Families and Case Western Reserve University presented a 3-hour Training Institute on behavioral health workforce development policy and strategies states like Connecticut and Ohio are using to address the ongoing workforce shortage.

Great presenting with Frank Gregory of CT DCF and Jeff Spears, Richard Shepler, and Heather Distin of Case Western Reserve's Begun Center for Violence Prevention Research and Education and Child and Adolescent Behavioral Health Center of Excellence!

cc: Innovations Institute

CHDI is saddened to learn of the passing of longtime partner and advocate Beresford Wilson, Jr., who, through his work leading FAVOR, Inc. and AFCAMP, worked tirelessly to empower and uplift the voices of Connecticut families with lived experience in the children's behavioral health system.

In 2014, following the tragedy in Newtown, Beresford facilitated input from families and youth for the development of Connecticut’s Behavioral Health Plan for Children, helping to organize public forums and listening sessions across the state (as he was doing in this photo). He was also an essential partner in Connecting to Care CT's work to strengthen the system of care for all children with behavioral health needs.

We send our deepest condolences to his family, friends, and colleagues. 💙

📣Reminder: we're hiring!

CHDI is seeking a Senior Associate (or Director, depending on experience) to work closely with state agencies and providers within the state’s Functional Family Therapy-Foster Care (FFT-FC) program to develop plans to improve the recruitment and retention of foster families as well as reduce placement disruptions.

👉Learn more and apply: https://loom.ly/MyxQ4uo

Named a "Best Place to Work in Connecticut" four years in a row, CHDI offers competitive salaries, excellent benefits, a hybrid work environment, generous PTO, and a caring, collegial culture dedicated to building a better behavioral health system for all children. See job description for full details!

Great reconnecting with partners from Connecticut and around the country on Day 1 of the ! If you're here this week, be sure to stop by our exhibit table (in the Potomac Ballroom pre-function area) to say hello and learn more about our work.

1: CHDI Chief Program Officer Jason Lang with Tammy Freeberg of The Village for Families & Children and Jennifer Nadeau of Community Health Resources
2: CHDI President and CEO Jeff Vanderploeg with Gary Blau of the The Hackett Center for Mental Health
3: Our exhibit table ready to go

Thanks to our hosts at Innovations Institute for bringing us together!