Project Description:
The focus of Childrens Mental Health Champion is the strategy of partnerships with the intended short term outcome of improving the capacity to establish and maintain partnerships within and across sectors to create a shared vision of health, and the intermediate outcome of strengthening capability to respond to public health priorities collaboratively and strategically.
Maine has a strong early childhood and family serving cross sector community. The intention in bringing this particular statewide early childhood professional learning community (PLC) together was to enhance and build on the collaborations between these organizations and agencies specifically in the areas of disability, mental health and equity. The approach in forming and structuring this PLC sought to address barriers to authentic community building, cross sector collaboration, and as well as to creating a coherent, inclusive shared vision of health and well-being for children and families.
To achieve these outcomes we were very intentional in the composition of the PLC. Two variables to particularly address were:
Representation from communities from the actual geographic location of the community. Maines population is highly concentrated in the southern 1/3 of the state and the capital is located in that region as well. Communities not located in this area are often underrepresented in statewide work, and this has created barriers in community collaborations in statewide initiatives, and ongoing relationships.
Childcare professionals are almost never directly included in child and family serving initiatives and efforts. As co-caregivers in the lives of children and families, their voice is not only critical and invaluable, but also absent in efforts that directly impact them, and the children and families they serve.
Additionally, intentional creation of a broad cross sector community with representation from the following organizations and agencies:
Department of Health and Human Services Office of Children and Families
Department of Education Early Intervention Services Child Development Services (CDS)
Maine Chapter of the National Association for the Education of Young Children (MAEYC)
Maine Association of Infant Mental Health (MEIAMH)
Maine Resilience Building Network (MRBN)
Department of Education Pre-K
Family Childcare Association of Maine (FCCAM)
Maine Parent Federation Maines
Head Start
Maine Chapter of National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI ME)
And in keeping with the objective from the personnel and trainees theme in the AUCD diversity and inclusion toolkit Develop and nurture partnerships with organizations representing or affiliated with diverse communities. intentional representation from:
New Mainers Public Health (NMPH)
Mano en Mano
New England Arab American Organization
Maines Tribal Community
With representation from the both the geographic community location and the areas of expertise in child and family supports and services, the voices of children and families will emerge in the narratives that each of the representatives shared. In terms of the structure and functioning of the PLC, blended elements from the definition of professional learning communities and a co-creative technical assistance approach were sought. Although there is no universal definition of a PLC, they tend to share the following qualities: ongoing, reflective, collaborative, inclusive, learning oriented and growth promoting (Stoll, 2006). To enhance these qualities and promote outcomes, components of a co-creative technical assistance (TA) approach was applied in the formation and facilitation of the PLC. The following three essential functions from a co-creative TA approach were implemented: co-learning, brokering, and facilitation. These essential functions are further described as follows:
Co-Learning: Work collaboratively with system stakeholders to learn about the history and current priorities in local context.
Brokering: Enable knowledge exchange and sharing among stakeholders to increase understanding of diverse perspectives.
Facilitation: Enable a process of participatory problem solving and support that occurs in a context of recognized need for improvement and supportive interpersonal relationships. Successful facilitation promotes cycles of mutual consultations among stakeholders to ensure that different forms of knowledge and ways of knowing are integrated into the planning and solutions. Full participation where all stakeholders are encouraged to share their perspectives. Mutual understanding where stakeholders accept the legitimacy of one anothers needs and goals. Inclusive solutions that emerge from the integration of everybodys perspective and needs.
These elements correspond directly with the description of the objective from the personnel and trainee theme in the AUCD diversity and inclusion toolkit identified above:
It involves building authentic partnerships, including mutual respect and active, inclusive participation; power sharing and equity; mutual benefit or finding the win-win possibility in the collaborative project. The emphasis on community engagement promotes a focus on common ground and recognizes that communities have important knowledge and valuable experience to add to public stakeholder discussions.
Networking with cross-silo cultural and linguistic competence initiatives connects to others who may serve as resources for AIDD/AUCD/UCEDD/LEND work, helps other mainstream human services see the ways cultural and linguistic competence issues play out in disability services, and helps those mainstream organizations recognize the ways that disability is also a diversity and inclusion issue.
In pooling all the variables described above this early childhood statewide professional learning community has steadily and continually progressed towards co-creating a culturally responsive shared understanding of health and well-being for young children and their families through a narrative advocacy approach.
Unserved or Under-served Populations:
Racial or Ethnic Minorities, Disadvantaged Circumstances, Limited English
