Youth Empowerment Programs

Youth Empowerment Programs…Nothing About Us Without Us

The Bureau of Children and Families of the New York State Office of Mental Health has supported and promoted many of the pioneering efforts of the Family Support Movement. Over the past decade we have seen family members advocate for themselves and their children for improved services at many different levels. As a result families have hanged the way services are delivered.

Over the past decade the Office of Mental Health has been working in conjunction with young people, in several different capacities, on a smaller effort. The Youth Empowerment Movements’ call is “Nothing About Us Without Us”. Because Youth Involvement is new and people are unsure of how to handles it, a lot of what we have discussed over the years is “How and Why to Include Young People in the Process”.

One of the Bureau of Children and Families’ main goals is to get young people to the policy making table. They are the only ones who can tell us if what we are doing and plan on doing is that they want and need. We know that young people can poignantly articulate their wants and needs and their voices need to be heard. The Bureau, in conjunction with Families Together, is currently developing three youth-driven projects: the Youth Advisory Council; the Prime Directive Initiative; and the Youth Involvement Initiative. Although all three are inter-related, each stands on its own.

Youth Advisory Council

The Youth Advisory Council’s purpose is to:
1. advise OMH’s Bureau of Children and Families about statewide issues being faced by youth today;
2. offer a youth perspective to the Family Support Movement;
3. educate communities about the needs of children in New York State as they relate to mental health;
4. work in the regions developing forums to address youth concern and present those concerns to OMH and interested parties; and
5. assist in developing a cross-systems advocacy network.

To qualify to serve as a Statewide Youth Advisory Council Member, young people should:
· be between the ages of 14 and 19 who receive, or have received, mental health services
· live in New York State;
· represent a group of young people who receive mental health services;
· meet the “Success in School” statement;
· have parent/guardian approval; and
· be willing to follow the rules of conduct and participation.

Prime Directive Initiative

The Prime Directive Initiative is a consumer-driven project that has been under development for the past year. Many young people, family members, professionals, and policy makers contributed to the creation of two documents. My Prime Directive Journal and the Prime Directive, through focus groups that were held across the State. The goal of the Prime Directive Initiative is to give young people a voice in their treatment and series planning. The Prime Directive Journal is both interactive and educational. It informs youth of some of the choices they might want to think about for their self-care and it allows them to record what they need from others in Part II. What each person does with the journal is their choice. One may chose to share Part II with others they feel need the information or may choose not to share their prime directive with anyone. These two documents will be available shortly.

Youth Involvement Initiative

This initiative is designed to get young people involved in several different ways. We want to create alternative supports for young people. We want to promote maximum participation of young people into the local and state planning processes and provide technical support for youth initiatives.

The following list gives examples of Youth Involvement but is by no means exhaustive:
· Peer Support
· Self-help
· Self-advocacy
· System Advocacy
· Youth Advisory Committees
· Youth Leadership Training
· Public Speaking Training

We Need Your Help

In order to pursue this third initiative of creating Youth Involvement at the local level we need your assistance. We would like every Family Support Services Program to answer and return the Youth Involvement Questionnaire that will be mailed to you shortly. Together, we are seeking family support programs that are willing to sponsor Youth Involvement programs that building on the success of the Family Support Movement. The Bureau is prepared to offer technical assistance at several sites across the state to develop and formalize a replicable model for Youth Involvement. If you are willing to be one of the demo sites for a Youth Involvement program, please be sure to fill out that part of the survey form.

As members of families, young people need to have the same opportunities to create a responsive system that adult family members have. Please get involved with promoting Youth Involvement- you are sure to find it as rewarding as we do! For more information contact Kate Purcell at Families Together in NYS at 888-326-8644 or 518-432-0333 or kpurcell@ftnys.org.