iGROW has several fundamental components of programming. These include:
1. Interfaith coalition that meets on a regular basis for ongoing training, needs assessment, program development, evaluation, and strategic planning around sustainability and capacity building. Currently, six churches and one temple make up the interfaith coalition. Both religious and lay leaders participate in the coalition.
2. Clinical expertise offered by a mental health team from Children’s Hospital. Clinicians provide material for programming, as well as ongoing support and referral services for adult leaders within iGROW.
3. Emphasis on teaching coping skills for all adolescents, not just those struggling with depression.
4. Community liaison through Adolescent Wellness, Inc.
5. “Safety net” for adolescents and families that includes clinicians, community mental health services, referral services, and crisis intervention services
6. Library of resource information available (for adolescents and adults) during TEAGOTS (quarterly events called Teens Enjoying a Good Ol’ Time) and within individual congregations
Adolescent Wellness acts immediately on medical research findings with pilot programming. Our goal is to simplify depression prevention and reduce the typical lag of ten years between research and standard practice. AWI assists with programming documentation and program replication. Our website www.AdolescentWellness.org offers resources for youth, schools, parents and clergy:
2003 – Started building resources for parents by assisting with printing A Parent’s Guide to a Child’s Psychiatric Hospitalization by Children’s Hospital Boston and republished by Boston Public Health Commission
2005 – Started building grade 7-12 resources by assisting with printing An Adolescent Mental Health & Wellness Curriculum: A Starter Kit For Schools by McLean Hospital and Children’s Hospital Boston and assisting with Train The Trainer workshops
2006 – Assisted with printing Preventing Depression: A Toolkit For Schools by Children’s Hospital Boston (SDPI)
2007 – Started building resources for clergy by assisting with clergy workshops
2008 – Started building resources for youth by assisting with iGROW, an interfaith community peer mentoring program
2009 – Assisted with the Call For Art which requests submissions to include a sentence about one’s mood while creating the art and another when completing the item. Program replication is now underway in the City of Somerville, MA. Assisted with printing How Not To Keep A Secret by South Shore Hospital’s in-school peer mentoring program, Youth Health Connections
iGROW Program Goals:
Acting to reduce the typical lag time of ten years between research and standard practice, the Adolescent Wellness mission is to simplify depression prevention. The serious consequences of depression in youth emphasize the need to address mental health from a preventive perspective. As many as 24% suffer a depressive episode, usually undiagnosed or untreated. Untreated depression can lead to deteriorating schoolwork, high absenteeism, dropping out, and strained relationships. Depressive disorders are the largest single contributor to suicide risk The mission of Adolescent Wellness is to simplify depression prevention.
The iGROW (Interfaith Gathering ‘Round Our Wellness) program has been implemented in a single community with high school age teens. The program will be offered to middle school ages in the coming year. A manual is being written for use by other communities to replicate the iGROW program. Discussions have started with clergy of a second community in preparation for starting iGROW in their interfaith community this Fall. The goals of iGROW are to;
• Build community – program offers both adults and adolescents a safe, non-judgmental place to share opinions, ask questions, and interact with others.
• Build a common voice – through psychoeducation, activities, and an interfaith framework incorporating spirituality as a protective factor, the program offers language around identification, treatment, and prevention of mental illness as well as promotion of resilience
• Teach skills for taking care of self and others – program teaches adolescents and adults the skills needed to help themselves, friends, families, and communities
Support is needed as some congregations do not have funds to purchase materials or host the events when their turn in the rotation arises. Support is also needed to introduce the program into regional and national organizations for the various congregations.
Name of Organization:Adolescent Wellness, Inc
Number of Paid Staff:0
Number of Volunteers:9
Total Organizational Expenses:$3,164
% of Organizational Overhead Expenses:17%
We know youth speak about concerns with each other long before they speak with adults; the Adolescent Wellness organization pilots programs to make that conversation more helpful. We provide support information to youth, families and youth clergy that is relevant even when school is closed for the summer.
For example, the iGROW program is grounded in Bronfenbrenner’s social ecological model, and is informed by evidence found in the Child Health and Social Ecology (CHASE, Norifumi et. al, 2008) project, where researchers demonstrated youth can successfully impart knowledge to their community, promote open and effective communication and reduce stigma. iGROW also follows the CDC’s strategic direction to “prevent suicidal behavior by building and strengthening connectedness or social bonds within and among persons, families, and communities” (CDC, 2009).
Youth peer leadership training includes in-depth education about mental illnesses as they appear during adolescence, leadership skills, strategies for helping friends, how to seek help from adults, and ways to engage the community around prevention efforts related to mental illness. Leaders continue to enhance their leadership skills through the direct development and implementation of all activities carried out in TEAGOTs (Teens Enjoying a Good Ol’ Time). TEAGOTs are events held every three months during the academic year. All youth group members in grades 9-12 are invited to attend. The location of TEAGOTs rotates amongst the seven houses of worship. All TEAGOTs have a foundation structure: (1) food and socializing, (2) welcome from host, (3) icebreaker activity, (4) introduction to “concept,” (5) small group activity, (6) large group share, (7) closing. The themes of the TEAGOTs are different each time, but always focus on education about mental health and skill building. A component of spirituality is also included in all TEAGOTs.
This year’s peer leaders completed evaluations regarding their participation in the program. Overall, they strongly endorsed having learned information about mental illness and resilience, and they reported feeling more comfortable addressing problems and battling stigma related to mental illness. The youth simply attending the events also completed evaluations and they reported enjoying participating in the program, and endorse future use of skills learned. Specifically, the mean scores of their responses were greater than 4 out of a maximum of 5 to the questions:
-I would like to attend more TEAGOTS
-I learned something new this TEAGOT.
-I learned a new self-care skill.
-I learned how the different activities featured in this TEAGOT are related to mental health and wellness.
-I will use one of the skills I learned during this TEAGOT in the future.
The youth clergy and adult lay leaders also speak to the success of iGROW:
-“[The] benefits that have the most effect - building a community of people who trust their ability to engage this material around depression/suicide rather than deny/ignore it.”
-“To struggle emotionally does not have such a negative stigma anymore in our youth group and this has also reached into the wider church. The adults and parents of youth are aware of the work of iGROW and more are coming to talk about concerns they have with their children – people are talking!”
Learning
Relationships Between People
Respecting your Body
Saving a Life
Remote involvement:
-Download from www.AdolescentWellness.org an iGROW TIP sheet title of interest, read it and think how one might practice the skill or knowledge.
-Introduce the iGROW resource to your youth group leader and ask if replicating the program locally might be of interest.
Local involvement:
-All youth attending congregations in Wellesley, MA or Waltham, MA are encouraged to attend an iGROW event, called a TEAGOT.
-All youth attending congregations in Wellesley, MA or Waltham, MA are encouraged to become Peer Leaders. This involves acting as a facilitator during the quarterly TEAGOT, participation in planning/debrief meetings for each TEAGOT, and occasional training events.
Name:Robert Anthony
Title:Executive Director
Address:103 Old Colony Road, Wellesley, MA 02481
Telephone:(781) 727-8617
Email:BobAnthony@AdolescentWellness.org
Website:www.AdolescentWellness.org