Thursday, May 15, 2025
5/15/2025
Building Bridges and Connecting Communities: Peer Leadership Development through Statewide Networks - The Peer Support Coalition of Florida, Inc. (PSCFL) is requesting support through SAMHSA, Center for Mental Health Services (CMHS): Statewide Consumer Network Program (SCN) to increase and enhance the presence of statewide peer networks in Florida. The goal of this project is to measurably increase the levels and quality of peer support across the state of Florida for persons experiencing severe mental illnesses by increasing the capacity for consumer leadership and the creation of statewide consumer operated organizations. PSCFL will establish or engage and develop regional peer networks across the state and lead and support the peer networks in outreach efforts to identify and grow the numbers of peers within the networks, reaching underserved and under-represented areas across the state and connecting them with needed resources and supports. It is our goal to use the expanded peer networks to gather and disseminate information in a directed strategic plan to effectuate changes in the system. PSCSL will partner with Florida’s Managing Entities, existing regional peer networks, and other Florida mental health advocacy organizations to more effectively align and collaborate on systems change through an exchange of information and data on the specific needs of individuals with serious mental illness (SMI). Through the peer networks, this project will create and operate a Peer Leadership Academy (PLA) to develop peers’ leadership and advocacy skills and provide opportunities for peers to engage in activities that reinforce the skills learned in the PLA. The project outlined will support the priorities and transformational activities of Florida’s treatment system to a Recovery-Oriented System of Care (ROSC). Currently, a lack of opportunity exists in Florida for individuals with SMI to provide feedback to the system in which they receive services from. Through this project, PSCFL sees the opportunity to begin building bridges and connecting communities to more effectively impact systems change to be reflective of a ROSC and continue advancing the ROSC priorities identified by Florida’s Department of Children and Families (DCF) Substance Abuse and Mental Health Program Office.
HHS’ Tracking Accountability in Government Grants System (TAGGS) website provides access to detailed descriptions of grants, loans, aggregated direct payments and other types of financial assistance awarded by the HHS Operating Divisions (OPDIVs) and the Office of the Secretary Staff Divisions (STAFFDIVs).