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In an op-ed for New York Daily News, our CEO & President Melanie Hartzog discusses the benefits and need for Alternative to Incarceration programs – like Families Rising, The Foundling’s long-running ATI program, which has helped more than 500 adolescents and young adults avoid incarceration since its launch in 2012.

Programs like this in New York City are in jeopardy however, given upcoming budget cuts. “The Foundling and several other Alternative to Incarceration and re-entry programs have been told to expect $7 million in cuts in the coming fiscal year, which starts on July 1, and $9 million the following fiscal year. For every $100,000 of funding lost, we estimate that 16 young people won’t receive services,” says Hartzog.

“I spent three years as the director of the New York City Office of Management and Budget during the last mayoral administration. I know firsthand there are many ways to approach balancing the city’s budget. One is to strike budget lines on a spreadsheet, but the best way is to recognize the real value — and dollars saved — of programs over time. Alternative to Incarceration programs change lives and come with immediate and longer-term benefits, among them money saved,” Hartzog writes.

Read more at New York Daily News

 

Mel Hartzog -resized

In a new op-ed for NYN Media, our President & CEO Melanie Hartzog writes about how our mental health system is broken – and how it can be fixed.

“There are devoted, compassionate people at every level of the system who are ready for change, and concrete things we can do together starting in 2024 to help our most vulnerable,” Hartzog writes.

Using the example of Alex, a child in care with The Foundling who has cycled through systems and facilities after experiencing severe mental health needs, she stresses that the system is broken. There are too many barriers to reaching appropriate mental health care before it escalates into crisis. She shares solutions, such as increasing communication among government and nonprofit agencies, reducing barriers caused by health insurance, investing in additional community services, and more.

Read more on NYN Media

In this opinion piece in the New York Times, opinion columnist Pamela Paul writes about the impact of social media on the mental health of young people. Citing a recent study showing that Black and Hispanic teenagers spend more time on social media phone apps, she discusses the implications of these findings.  Dr. Akeem Marsh, of our Home for Integrated Heath, provided an expert quote.

Read more at NY Times

 

 

“More help is on the way to New York state schools to support students’ mental health,” reports CBS New York. “On Thursday, Gov. Kathy Hochul presented a check to the nonprofit the New York Foundling in Tribeca, where a mental health clinic will be set up.”

Watch the video at CBS New York

NY.GOV Mental Health Clinics

The New York Foundling is proud to partner with the New York State Office of Mental Health in this new initiative, and to have received funding to establish a school-based mental health clinic at the Leadership and Public Service High School in Manhattan.


GOVERNOR HOCHUL ANNOUNCES $5.1 MILLION TO ESTABLISH SCHOOL-BASED MENTAL HEALTH CLINICS

Funding to Support Satellite Clinics at 137 Schools and Promote Student Access to Necessary Treatment and Support 

Awards are Part of Governor Hochul’s $1 Billion Plan to Expand New York State’s Continuum of Mental Health Care and Address Youth Mental Health Challenges

 

For Immediate Release: 11/30/2023

Governor Kathy Hochul today announced that more than $5.1 million was awarded to support 137 school-based mental health clinic satellites throughout New York State, including 82 at high-needs schools. Administered by the New York State Office of Mental Health, the funding is part of the governor’s $1 billion landmark plan to transform New York’s mental health care system, which includes a total of $8.3 million to support and expand these clinics throughout the state.

“In the age of aggressive social media culture, it is clear young people are facing insidious, and increasingly complex challenges to their mental and emotional wellness,” Governor Hochul said. “By expanding mental health clinics in school-based settings, we can help engage young people of all ages in a familiar and stigma-free environment through conversations led by licensed experts.”

Office of Mental Health-licensed providers were awarded $25,000 per clinic to establish services at 137 schools throughout the state. An additional $20,000 per school was awarded to those providers establishing services at high-needs schools, where more than 50 percent of the students are classified as coming from economically disadvantaged households.

In total, $1.4 million in startup funding was provided for clinics at 55 schools, with an additional $3.7 million awarded to clinics at 82 schools located within high-needs districts. Once these s are established, there will be roughly 1,200 school-based clinics throughout New York State.

New York State Office of Mental Health Commissioner Dr. Ann Sullivan said, “By expanding these clinics into additional schools throughout the state, we can help youth and their families identify mental health issues and access care earlier on, which ultimately lead to better health outcomes for young people. I commend Governor Hochul for expanding these clinics in her landmark plan to build out New York’s continuum of mental health care and her continued focus on improving youth mental health throughout our state.”

The satellite clinics operate at each school’s main location and will be staffed by mental health practitioners regularly throughout the academic week. Through establishing a physical space within a school building, these clinics will be part of the school community alongside educators, allowing them to achieve optimal treatment outcomes.

Practitioners will help to identify childhood mental health needs earlier and engage families that might not have otherwise sought mental health assistance. A list of the new satellite clinics by region, district, and school can be found here.

Governor Hochul announced the awards during a visit to the Leadership and Public Service High School in Tribeca, where she met with students to discuss the mental health challenges they face along with their peers. New York Foundling will establish a satellite clinic at the school using a $45,000 award through the initiative.

The funding will enable New York Foundling to develop a physical location at the school, shift a part-time program supervisor to a full-time role, and provide additional training for staff. Once established, the clinic will work to reduce mental health stigma, engage students and their families to connect them with services and provide case management for those needing more intensive services.

New York Founding CEO Melanie Hartzog said, “Our kids’ mental health needs are only growing. Thanks to this new funding, the New York Foundling will be able to open an on-site mental health clinic the at Leadership and Public Service High School that will provide therapy, referrals, and complex care coordination. This is exactly the kind of model we need to be expanding across the city and state. We are so grateful to Governor Hochul and the Office of Mental Health for this support.”

Assemblymember Aileen M. Gunther said, “Mental Health care is vital to all our communities. As a registered nurse and Assemblymember I have seen firsthand the struggle to provide adequate care for youth mental health throughout New York State. I applaud Governor Kathy Hochul on the expansion of these school-based mental health clinic satellites throughout New York State. These clinics bring care directly to those in need and it is critical that our state supports New York’s communities, including by enhancing supports for children’s mental health. I have always fought for what was best for my constituents, and I look forward to working with Governor Hochul on further expanding our healthcare infrastructure so that all those in need of mental health support have the access they need.”

Governor Hochul has made youth mental health a focus of her administration and included it as an important component of her landmark $1 billion plan to strengthen New York State’s mental healthcare system. In the Fiscal Year 2024 Budget adopted in May, she secured $30 million to expand mental health services for school-aged children throughout the state, including $20 million for school-based mental health services and $10 million to implement wraparound services training.

Governor Hochul’s plan also provided a 25 percent increase in Medicaid rates for full-day school-based programs for young people with significant mental health challenges and for school-based mental health services provided by Article 31 licensed clinics serving children in pre-K, elementary and secondary schools. This additional funding will improve access to services and ensure close coordination between the clinics, schools, and families.

As part of her plan, Governor Hochul increased insurance reimbursement rates for school based mental health services, ensuring the care provided by school-based mental health clinic satellites will be covered by commercial insurance plans and at the same rates as Medicaid. This change was adopted as part of the FY 2024 State Budget in May and will take effect starting in January, ensuring clinics can provide a high-quality care at their school satellites.

Last Spring, Governor Hochul hosted a Listening Tour on Youth Mental Health, which culminated in the first-ever Summit on Youth Mental Health, gathering state and national experts alongside service providers and stakeholders to examine the unprecedented challenges many young people are facing today. The tour and summit resulted in recommendations to invest in community-based resources for mental wellness promotion and to increase free or low-cost mental health resources.

Watch and learn more at NY.GOV

Pix11-11communitychampions

Pix 11 journalist Monica Morales highlights Melanie Hartzog, our CEO & President, in her recent roundup of community champions!

Read more on Pix 11

Melanie Hartzog Crain's New York

Crain’s profiled our President & CEO, Melanie Hartzog. In the piece, she discusses how her personal background has informed her decision to work in the social services field, and led her to her work at The Foundling.

Read more at Crain’s New York

MetsgivingPix11

Pix11 News reported about the Mets’ ninth annual MetsGiving Turkey Giveaway – which partnered with The Foundling this year to distribute turkeys in Staten Island.

Watch on Pix 11

City & State Anne Williams-Isom

City & State recently profiled Anne Williams-Isom, New York City’s current Deputy Mayor of Health and Human Services, about the competing pressures she faces in her job – particularly as she is tasked with managing the large influx of migrants that have arrived in the city over the past year.  As the previous official in this role, our CEO and President Melanie Hartzog is quoted in the profile, drawing parallels between this and the COVID-19 crisis that she managed during her time in the position.

Read more at City & State

 

Haven Kids Rock

The Imprint reports on Haven Kids Rock, our after-school program based out of Haven Academy, as they perform their new show – Shelter Me, The Musical. 

Read more at The Imprint

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