Greetings, Network faithful. Let’s revisit an oldie but goodie sung by Durand Jones & The Indications, a talented group of youngins paying homage to 60’s R&B with a heavy dose of soul. Put your shades on, and groove to a great cover of the classic Is It Any Wonder? And then carry that vibe with you so you can get busy cuz we got work to do!

Most Important Reads of the Week

Online Masters in Child and Adolescent Behavioral Health is Possible!
Ya gotta love the University of South Florida and its trailblazing online master’s program in Child and Adolescent Behavioral Health. Yep, they were one of the first to go online (way ahead of the Pandemic) and continue to be one of the best. Thinking about getting your master’s degree? Download the flyer, attend the orientation session on March 29th, and get to learnin’!

California’s Children and Youth Behavioral Health Ecosystem
The State of California recently released a draft of a report titled “California’s Children and Youth Behavioral Health Ecosystem.” Breaking Barriers, a coalition of child and youth-serving leaders from across the state, was commissioned to draft the paper. The Coalition convened a multidisciplinary team that conducted extensive research, literature review, and interviews with subject matter experts from across the state and country, as well as gathering input and recommendations from over 100 youth and families throughout California. The paper represents a blueprint for linking long disconnected service systems into a truly whole-family/whole-child approach.

County Funding Opportunities to Support Community Members Experiencing a Behavioral Health Crisis
The National Association of County Behavioral Health and Developmental Disability Directors (NACBHDD) recently unveiled the County Funding Opportunities to Support Community Members Experiencing a Behavioral Health Crisis in partnership with the National Association of Counties (NACo). The chart outlines federal, state, local, and non-government resources that counties can leverage to fund elements of the behavioral health continuum of care.

How Grown-Ups Can Help Kids Transition to ‘Post-pandemic’ School Life
School counselor Meredith Draughn starts every day by greeting the students who fill her campus hallways with a cup of coffee in hand. There are about 350 of them, and she knows all their names. “Kids want to feel known and want to feel loved. And greeting them by name is one way we can do that. Research shows that that helps us build a positive and welcoming culture.”

Post-its-to-Practice Virtual Symposium
Friday, April 21, 2023
The Post-its-to-Practicum Virtual Symposium will provide various sessions that focus on supporting the needs and changing the narrative of children and adolescents involved in the child welfare system and those with an incarcerated parent. This workshop is designed for helping professionals, graduate students, and supportive adults interested in these fields. Attendees will explore interventions and best practices that will support their advocacy efforts and connect with other professionals and supportive adults in these fields.

Request for Applications: Evaluation of Use of NASEM’s Resilience and Wellbeing Tools in Pediatric Practices
Submission Deadline: March 20, 2023
The American Academy of Pediatrics is recruiting up to 5 pediatric practices to pilot test a suite of resilience and wellbeing tools aimed at children and adolescents to increase coping skills and resilience to stressors. The project aims to evaluate the recently developed National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine (NASEM) Resilience and Wellbeing Tools for potential use in pediatric practices. Teams from participating practices will pilot test the tools over a 3-month period and participate in evaluation activities designed to assess the ease of use, acceptability, and potential effectiveness of the tools within pediatric practices and for families. Findings from the evaluation will increase understanding of the suitability of the tools within pediatric healthcare settings and inform future implementation activities. Practices will receive $8,000 for the successful completion of project activities.

Racial and Ethnic Approaches to Community Health (REACH)
CDC announces the availability of fiscal year 2023 funds to implement CDC-RFA-DP23-2314: Racial and Ethnic Approaches to Community Health (REACH). This 5-year program is to improve health, prevent chronic diseases, and reduce health disparities among racial and ethnic populations with the highest risk, or burden, of chronic disease, specifically for African Americans/Blacks, Hispanic Americans, Asian Americans, Native Hawaiian/Other Pacific Islanders, American Indians, and Alaska Natives. Closing Date for Applications: Apr 11, 2023. Electronically submitted applications must be submitted no later than 11:59 pm ET on the listed application due date.

HHS establishes new National Early Care and Education (ECE) Workforce Center
The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS), through the Administration for Children and Families (ACF), is announcing the launch of the new National Early Care and Education Workforce Center (the ECE Workforce Center). The ECE Workforce Center is the result of a $30 million investment to support research and technical assistance for states, communities, territories, and Tribal Nations to improve the recruitment and retention of a diverse and qualified workforce across early care and education programs.

Impact of the Coronavirus Disease 2019 Pandemic on Mental Health Visits in Pediatric Primary Care
Eating disorder visits and mood disorder visits significantly increased, whereas alcohol and substance use disorder visits significantly decreased during the pandemic period among pediatric patients, highlighting the need to identify and manage mental health conditions in the pediatric primary care setting.

A Call for a National Strategy to Strengthen the Youth Behavioral Health Workforce
Since the COVID-19 pandemic began, many sectors have had high staff vacancy rates. This includes behavioral health professionals serving young people and school behavioral health staff, child psychologists, and therapists. In Massachusetts, a recent survey reported that for every ten clinicians that are hired, 13 leave. At the same time, the number of young people diagnosed with anxiety, depression, and behavioral problems has increased significantly. This past fall, more than a hundred state and national organizations focused on improving young people’s mental health and well-being sent a letter to President Biden, calling for a national emergency and specifically for a “robust and comprehensive mental health workforce strategy.”

White House Report on Mental Health Research Priorities
The White House Report on Mental Health Research Priorities outlines an Administration-wide set of critical and timely needs and opportunities in mental health research.

Promoting Young Adult Success in School and Work – Free Training for Providers
This new training program is designed to offer information and resources to people interested in supporting youth and young adults with serious mental health conditions in their transition to employment and post-secondary education. This program is part of the 2019-2024 Learning & Working RRTC.

Global Proportion of Disordered Eating in Children and Adolescents: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis
In this systematic review and meta-analysis of 32 studies, including participants from 16 countries, 22% reported that children and adolescents showed disordered eating. The proportion was further elevated among girls, older adolescents, and those with a higher body mass index.

Talking to Children About Racial Bias
Given the tragic and racially-charged current events, many parents are wrestling with their feelings, their hopes for their children and the difficulty of helping those children thrive in a world full of racial bias. Parents may better face today’s challenges with an understanding of how racial bias works in children and strategies to help them deal with and react to racial differences.