Behavioral Health Workforce Education and Training Program for Paraprofessionals - The Center for Nonviolence and Social Justice (CNSJ) at Drexel University requests a continuation of support for its Healing Centered Learning (HCL), a Level 1 pre-service training program that provides didactic and experiential field training for young people aged 18–24 who have been impacted by violence or trauma to become healers and helpers in their own communities. HCL directly addresses complex needs at the individual, community and regional levels, making it an effective program worthy of continued investment: • Provides young people with trauma-informed training to become Community Health Workers (CHW) and Certified Peer Specialists (CPS) with two state-recognized certifications, making them eligible for positions in the social and human services field that provide a living wage. This improves their life trajectories and also ensures that they can provide effective health supports that improve quality of life for the individuals they serve. • Addresses two of the most impactful issues in Philadelphia communities, poverty and community violence and trauma. Well-prepared health workers have better job prospects and can help to break cycles of intergenerational poverty. • Adds capacity for youth voice to be incorporated into outreach, program development, and knowledge development in the field of workforce development and social and human services. HCL works to prepare young people in Philadelphia to address some of the biggest challenges facing their communities, i.e., poverty, community violence, trauma, and access to culturally relevant behavioral health services. This is done via two key programs: the Community Health Worker Peer Training Academy (Training Academy) and the Experiential Learning Program (ELP). The Community Health Worker Peer Training Academy, or Training Academy, is a nine-week, 185-hour, trauma-informed, mutual learning environment for young adults with lived experience of violence or trauma to become Community Health Workers (CHW) and Certified Peer Specialists (CPS). HCL is the only program in Philadelphia that provides both CHW and CPS training, so participants are more prepared for both physical and behavioral health settings as well as integrated health centers. Following completion of the Training Academy, participants have the option to move into the ELP, where they are assigned to 9-week, 180-hour internships at community-based organizations. Each week, trainees spend one day with CNSJ staff and two days on site, working directly with community members who have been affected by violence and trauma. Participants who take part in both opportunities gain a total of 365 hours of workforce preparation. Building on the comprehensive network of organizations from which Drexel has recruited trainees in the past, the Project Team works with partner organizations to recruit participants with lived experience of trauma or violence and identified barriers to employment. Other recruitment sites include neighborhood and civic associations, police department district community meetings, resource hubs, and religious organizations. Staff conduct street outreach to engage young people who are not connected to organizations. Every participant is thoroughly screened through an application and interview for lived experience and interest in becoming a CHW/CPS. Once working in the community, trainees will provide culturally appropriate or responsive outreach to communities less likely to have access to mental and behavioral health services, reduce the stigma around accessing behavioral health services, help community members navigate the behavioral and mental health service systems, advocate for patients, and provide motivational interviews, health coaching, group facilitation, and wellness and recovery action planning. We request review for funding priority 1: Role of the family and lived experience of the consumer and family paraprofessional partnership is requested. More information is in attch. 8.
