Project Description Narrative:
Milwaukee is home to a growing Latino population, with the greatest growth centered in Milwaukee's south side neighborhoods. Among residents of this area, except for home ownership, all income indicators and educational levels are significantly lower for Latinos compared to their white neighbors. This economic difficulty —which includes low academic achievement, low wages, high poverty, and significant unemployment — has a direct and major impact on family wellbeing, specifically on the mental health of children.
Three key indicators speak to the challenges facing children in this locale: educational failure, violent crime, and child abuse and neglect. Within this context, project partners will aim to address mental health problems experienced by students exposed to community and/or home violence through implementation of an evidence-based behavioral intervention program and build sustainable school capacity to support good mental health for children.
Community partners: Milwaukee Public Schools, Milwaukee County Wraparound Program, Milwaukee County Mobile Urgent Treatment Team (MUTT), Sixteenth Street Community Health Centers, United Migrant Opportunity Services (UMOS)
Additional MCW academic partners: Laura Glasman, PhD, Psychiatry and Behavioral Medicine; Angel Rosado, Psychiatry and Behavioral Medicine; Cheryl Sitzler, MA, Psychiatry and Behavioral Medicine