Project Summary:
Advancing Behavioral Health Initiative Phase III
Phase three of Better Together in La Crosse County's Advancing Behavioral Health Initiative will continue the coalition's established strategies by sharing learnings from phase two and engaging those who have not yet joined the effort. Most of the coalition's phase three work, however, will focus on building the capacity of partners to ensure they are prepared to carry on this work using their staff, budgets, and tools, and to put supports in place at a community level that provide continued access to training, data, and platforms for communicating across sectors. Like phases one and two, phase three will focus on improving the mental wellness of youth aged 12-18, but the work will shift its focus towards building the capacity of the community to serve youth for the long term.
By ensuring that the community served is equipped and committed to center the importance of improving the mental wellness and resilience of its youth and their families, the entire community will benefit from the buffering effects of stress, trauma, and other adverse effects on population health and well-being.
Community partners: Aquinas Schools, Bangor School District, Black Leaders Acquiring Collective Knowledge, Boys and Girls Club, Campaign to Change Direction, Great Rivers HUB, Great Rivers United Way, Gundersen Health System, Holmen School District, Hope Restores, La Crosse Area Family Collaborative, La Crosse Community Foundation, La Crosse County 4-H, La Crosse County Health and Human Services, La Crosse County Health Department, La Crosse Medical Health Science Consortium, La Crosse Police Department, La Crosse School District, Mental Health Coalition/National Alliance on Mental Illness, Onalaska School District, Runaway & Homeless Youth Mediation & Emergency Services (RHYMES), The Center: 7 Rivers LGBTQ Connection, The Good Fight, University of Wisconsin-La Crosse, Upward Bound, UW Extension, Viterbo University, West Salem School District, YMCA, Youth System of Care
This project is part of AHW's Advancing Behavioral Health Initiative, an eight-year, $20 million initiative bringing together 10 community coalitions from across Wisconsin to address pressing mental health needs within their communities. The initiative is designed in three phases, providing a funded planning year, a five-year implementation period, and a two-year sustainable transformation phase. Learn more here.