Program Provides Much Needed Mental Health Services for Local Youth
SAN FRANCISCO (Nov. 25, 2024) – On the heels of its success in San Diego, Alliant Educational Foundation (AEF) has launched the San Francisco Bay Area Children’s Mental Health Consortium, a partnership created to provide vital mental health assessments, diagnoses and treatments to underserved youth in the region.
Originally founded in San Diego in 2020 by AEF amid a nationwide mental health crisis, the San Diego Mental Health Consortium (SDMHC) has since provided mental health services to hundreds of at-risk children and youth, and last year facilitated nearly 2,000 individual and group sessions for 153 clients.
Partnering with a number of high-profile area nonprofit agencies as well as Alliant International University (AIU) and its California School of Professional Psychology (CSPP), the AEF-funded Consortiums support children’s mental health – strengthening positive parenting by providing quality services, including group and supportive therapy.
In the San Francisco area, AIU/CSPP graduate students from the school’s Emeryville campus have been assigned to participating agencies with a site supervisor and a licensed clinical psychologist supervisor funded by AEF. Current Bay Area Consortium partners, with an emphasis in the East Bay/Oakland area, include: Edgewood Center for Children and Families, Catholic Charities San Francisco, and Lincoln Families – with more expected to come on board.
According to AEF CEO Valin Brown, the newly launched Consortium will work with underserved children for early intervention and prevention – and was launched following a robust community needs assessment to determine core mental health service needs.
“We have learned that children from underserved communities of color are more likely to experience mental health conditions due to discrimination, socioeconomic conditions, trauma and barriers to quality mental health care,” Brown said. “Without proper intervention, students with mental health disorders are more likely to drop out of school, have learning difficulties and experience behavioral problems.”
“Despite helping clients who are experiencing severe challenges, the San Diego Regional Children’s Mental Health Consortium has made a significant difference through holistic, trauma-informed mental health treatment,” Brown added. “We are thrilled to expand our efforts into the San Francisco Bay Area and provide even more access to quality mental health assessment and treatment for communities in need.”
According to recent treatment outcome data, the Consortium has generated significant results in San Diego, providing an optimal model for San Francisco – and future programs throughout California. Last year, 70% of students treated in partnership with San Diego Unified School District (SDUSD) showed improvement in overall mental health functioning, while 75% showed decreased depression and 43% decreased their generalized anxiety disorder.
According to Lisa Oefinger Ph.D., director of clinical training for the Edgewood Center for Children and Families, a San Francisco nonprofit which provides intensive support services for children, teens and families, the Alliant graduate students will provide critical mental health support during a time when teen mental health challenges are a significant concern nationwide.
“As the oldest children’s nonprofit in the western United States, we have a long history of working with children and families, offering a wide range of services. We are so grateful to partner with the Alliant Educational Foundation in this new initiative – which will help us considerably as we strive to address behavior and mental health challenges through prevention and early intervention, community-based treatment, intensive programs, and residential care.”
Brown added, “AIU/CSPP’s network of psychology students across California makes this partnership possible. We look forward to continuing our expansion statewide, with a Sacramento telehealth clinic for adults experiencing trauma up next.”
For more information or to get involved in supporting this effort, please visit www.AlliantEd.org.
ABOUT ALLIANT EDUCATIONAL FOUNDATION
The Alliant Educational Foundation (AEF) was established in 2015 as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. AEF partners with Alliant International University and other institutions of higher education to provide a steady stream of funding and resources dedicated to supporting student scholarships, faculty research grants that will enhance academic outcomes, and broader community impact needs across the State of California. A core component of AEF’s mission is to support post-secondary students from a diversity of backgrounds as they prepare for careers of service and leadership that improve lives in underserved communities. For more information, visit allianted.org.
Media Contacts: Sandy Young / Jean Walcher, J. Walcher Communications
sandy@jwalcher.com / jean@jwalcher.com, 619-295-7140
