Blog

Tabby the bear is delivering smiles to homeless children across Chula Vista with the help of university students and police officers. Created by students from Brandman University in Irvine in partnership with the Chula Vista Police Department, the bear is meant to provide comfort to distressed children. The project is part of Brandman's organization leadership doctoral program, which challenged the students in an assignment to change the world by creating the most value possible. One team...

The County of San Diego’s Behavioral Health Services is holding their community engagement forums this summer. There are several opportunities in August for community members to provide feedback about its behavioral health programs and services. I invite you to register to attend these events and also welcome your help to spread the word about these important forums. We have created a social media kit to help easily you share the information. I have also attached a flyer and an image to...

* * * TIME SENSITIVE - DEADLINE IS MONDAY, JULY 31, 2017 5:00 PM* * * From: Audrey Porcella at SANDAG < Audrey.Porcella@sandag.org > Subject: SSTAC - Notice of Membership Opportunities / Aviso de oportunidades para afiliarse Membership applications for the Social Services Transportation Advisory Council (SSTAC) are now up on our website ( www.sandag.org/sstac ) and are attached to this email. Please read the notices below – available in English and Spanish – to learn more information...

Today: Our Experts are Taking to Facebook Live to Highlight the Latest Report on the Adolescent Brain Tune in at 8 p.m. EST (5 p.m. Pacific) today to watch a conversation with the Jim Casey Youth Opportunities Initiative on the release of The Road to Adulthood: Aligning Child Welfare Practice with Adolescent Brain Development . Register at - https://www.facebook.com/JimCaseyYouthOpportunitiesInitiative/ Adolescence is a major development period similar to the growth spurt of early childhood.

Jerry Navarro, owner of Jerome's Furniture, personally delivered 60 mattresses to the East County Transitional Living Center (ECTLC), where he was joyfully greeted by dozens of homeless children. The 30 new queen size mattresses and 30 twin size mattresses donated by Jerome's Furniture will replace existing mattresses that have been worn out over time by ECTLC residents who were once living on the streets, sought shelter at ECTLC, and are now in transition to living a self-sustaining,...

In a unanimous 4-0 vote (with Councilmember Bob McClellan absent), the El Cajon City Council has approved a major measure to address homelessness in El Cajon as part of an initiative developed by the East County Homeless Task Force (ECHTF.org). The measure includes an expenditure of $168,000 by the city. In El Cajon, one in three persons of homeless individuals are chronically homeless; 73 percent are male. Of those, seven percent are military veterans, 39 percent have serious mental...

San Diego business leaders on Thursday said they have raised money to fund two large tent shelters to get homeless people temporarily off the streets, but the next step will be up to elected officials. This doesn't work if the city doesn't step up and have their own internal debate and determine where these go, said Dan Shea, a chain restaurant operator and partner at Paradigm Investment Group, LLC. Each tent would hold about 250 people, and Shea said the plan is to put up as many as needed...

County supervisors approved a pilot project this past week that puts men who are in jail with mild to moderate mental illness in an intensive treatment regimen of 12-step meetings, outpatient therapy sessions and neighborhood support programs. The hope is that the system will make it easier for participants to better transition back into communities and reduce recidivism . County staff said they expect the trial-run will likely become a permanent program. The 12-month pilot was approved...

San Diego may soon become the largest city in the nation to pass a law requiring city contractors and consultants to pay employees equally regardless of gender or ethnicity. The goal of the new legislation, which the City Council may consider before its August recess, is to help close persistent pay gaps for women and minorities performing the same work as white men. Federal and state laws already require equal pay, but San Diego Councilman Chris Ward said this week that it's important for...

Twelve parent and youth leaders, reentry and educational leaders, and community organizers represented the region of San Diego in Sacramento on July 11th. Aligning with about 80 other community members and professionals statewide, everyone met with and educated legislative staff on the impact of ACEs, community trauma, community healing and resilience building. Organized by the 4CA steering group led by Center for Youth Wellness, Children Now, and ACEs Connection Network, the ACEs science...

Education Transformations is a company that works with districts, schools, teachers, and other organizations to improve Social/Emotional Intelligence (EQ), and what we call Relational Competency.

Could state policies be improved by a greater understanding of the lingering effects of childhood trauma? That's the case that social workers and psychologists will be making to California legislators Tuesday as part a policymaker education day. The California Campaign to Combat Childhood Adversity wants lawmakers to learn about the effects of toxic stress resulting from childhood trauma, which they say can influence everything from health care to the economy . The campaign points to...