Friends of the Children is working to address our nation's unprecedented youth mental health crisis.
For over 30 years, our model has specialized in serving children and families with significant barriers like cost, transportation and provider shortages, that make it hard to access health and mental healthcare. Friends provide healing centered services for 3-4 hours each week at home, at school, and in the community, promoting protective capacities and expanding the continuum of mental health support.
We want every child in our program to recognize their own unique abilities, have the skills to navigate life's challenges, succeed in school, and have a plan for the future.
Unfortunately, exposure to adversity—poverty, violence, substance use in the home—can increase the likelihood that a young person will experience a mental health challenge. By the time we meet them between the ages of 4-6, children in our program have experienced on average four adverse childhood experiences (ACEs).
Our paid, professional mentors represent the communities and experiences of the youth they serve. Using a healing-centered approach, Friends also work to ensure that children enrolled in our program know who they are and have the tools not just to survive but to thrive.
Investment in paid, professional mentoring increases the number of youth receiving evidence-based mental health and healing-centered services while also reducing the burden on existing systems of care.
The Friends of the Children model improves the mental, emotional, and behavioral health of youth in our program. Friends are equipped to promote well-being and to intervene when mental health challenges occur.
BUILDING WELL-BEING + CONNECTION
Throughout a young person’s 12+ years in our program, Friends work within an intentional framework that includes structured relationship and skill-building. In the younger years, Friends help children process emotions, work through change and practice coping skills that promote healing. As youth get older, Friends create safe spaces for youth to feel seen. They also build community through activities, community engagement and peer connections. A randomized controlled trial (RCT) study of our impact in the early years showed that children with a Friend were more likely than their peers to exhibit pro-social behaviors, like empathy or cooperation and were less likely than their peers to exhibit anti-social behaviors, like aggression or bullying.
IMPROVING ACCESS TO SUPPORTS
Friends are highly trained and supervised. Leveraging evidence-based practices from child and adolescent mental health, Friends implement actionable strategies that are individually tailored for youth with mental health challenges. For example, Friends use Motivational Interviewing to empower hope and change, practice mindfulness to help with emotional regulation, and teach strategies to manage anxiety. Friends also increase access to specialized supports when needed and increase engagement for young people who need services but who might otherwise be reluctant to access them. Finally, Friends across our network consult regularly with clinical practitioners who provide real-time coaching in their work supporting the mental health of youth and families.
The intentional work of our professional mentors makes a difference. With the help of a Friend, we know that:
91% of youth made progress on social and emotional development, such as asking for help from a caring adult and practicing healthy ways to cope with stress.
91% of youth in the program report accomplishing something they are proud of.
96% of youth did not self-harm last year.
90% of youth practiced positive relationship skills.
88% practiced persistence/grit, and 81% reported or demonstrated healthy coping skills.
89% of youth felt hopeful about their future.
70% of youth who needed counseling services received them.
JT and his father Thomas, who raised him on his own, went through a lot. When concerns about JT’s mental health first came up, it was hard for Thomas to trust that schools and the mental health system had his family’s best interests in mind. When bullying led to serious concerns about JT’s safety, the system took months to respond and Thomas was worried. Friends of the Children leveraged relationships with local clinicians and got support in place for both JT and Thomas right away — a request that Thomas was comfortable making because the organization had built trust with him and his son. With holistic support, JT graduated from high school and is now thriving as a young adult. Leaning in to entrepreneurship skills he cultivated while in the Friends program, he’s pursuing postsecondary education with a focus on his passion for business.
*Names have been changed for privacy