Department of Mental HealthCentral Mass Area

Third Annual Success-Fest!

Theme: H.O.P.E.: Healing, Opportunity, Prevention, Education

March 16, 2018, 8:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.

Mount Wachusett Community College, 444 Green St, Gardner, MA 01440

Call for Workshop Presentations

Applications are due January 12, 2018

The Department of Mental Health (DMH) Central Mass Area is seeking applications for workshopsfor the Area’s thirdannual Young Adult and Alliesconvention, H.O.P.E.: Healing, Opportunity, Prevention, Educationwhich will be held on March 16, 2018 atMount Wachusett Community Collegein Gardner, MA.

This event is a forum for young adults, young adult allies, parents, DMH staff, and community providers to network, share available resources and creative opportunities, and ultimately recognize and celebrate HOPE. The day’s format will begin with a keynote presentation by Lynda Michaud Cutrell, a well-known artist and member of the SoWa Artists Guild, a driving force with the Many Faces of Mental Health project, and a mother of young mandiagnosed with schizophrenia. The Many Faces of Mental Health project challenges the media's view of the look of someone living with symptoms of a mental illness, and informs with a true and hopeful view. A key to living well with any disability is not to be burdened with discrimination, but rather to have loving acceptance and inspiring role models. The project hopes to encourage all of those on the path to recovery.

Similar to Lynda’s mission, the Success-Fest event will encourage and ignite hope to recovery and resilience, with specific emphasis on Young Adults. The day will be filled with local experts and community providers to highlight promising practices and innovative ideas, demonstrations and interactive experiences for attendees to use multi-media art and sensory opportunities to build hope, opportunities to share and build connections with a spectrum of the members of the Young Adult community and a closing activity with exciting prizes!

Through this event we aim to:

  • Inspire hope amongst us all!
  • Celebrate the specialness of the Young Adult family.
  • Understand HOPE involves personality, spirit, individuality, and happiness.
  • Highlight accomplishments of young adults and parents to inspire ongoing achievements.
  • Motivate our communities to continue progress in supporting success for young adults and those involved in their lives.
  • Promote peer roles of young adults and parents, including their role in designing effective treatment practices.
  • Learning how to live both together and apart as adolescents transition into young adulthood.
  • Emphasize HOPE is an essential component of success for Young Adults and Allies, and we each have a role and responsibility.
  • What defines caring for a young adult; and what defines being a young adult.
  • Encourage individuals to create their own definition of hope.
  • Provide a fun, exciting, and interactive event for everyone!

The target audience includes all stakeholders – ANY young adult and parents of young adults (neither needs to be connected to DMH or any other services), Parent/ Peer Specialists, administrative and/or clinical providers, DMH Site and Area Offices, service providers, and the overall community.

Workshops:

Six workshops will be selected for three concurrent presentation periods - a morning, noon, and afternoon session. Workshops will be 60 minutes in duration, including time for Q&A. The selected presentations will be based on the project’s content and significance to the convention’s objectives,as well as the mix of applications. Workshop presenters are encouraged to provide handouts related to their project (e.g., handouts of resources, related articles, websites, etc.). The aim of each workshop should relate to helping attendees build hope related to the four categories of:

  • Healing: Highlighting a Positive Approach to Recovery
  • Opportunity: To be a Leader, Advocate, and Take Charge of your Life
  • Prevention: Expanding and Highlighting Support for the Young Adult World
  • Education: Building Optimism and Potential through Education

We are particularly interested in workshopsthat deliver,but not limited to:

  • Presentations by and with persons served and Peer Specialists.
  • Innovative practices with interactive experiences and hands-on learning experiences.
  • Inspirational and experiential narratives.
  • Events to highlight successesof young adults with the use of multimedia.
  • How to collaborate with parents of young adults to assist and prepare as well as “staff” (i.e. providers).
  • Initiatives that promote awareness, appreciation or understanding of the spirit of transitioning.
  • Initiatives to improve employment and other sustainable measures for young adults.
  • Initiatives to furthering education as well as trade and skill development for young adults.
  • Balancing the autonomy between young adults, parent(s), and providers.
  • Most importantly, ensuring each attendee will leave the workshop with a sensation of HOPE.

Application Process:

Please submit your application to present a workshopon the attached form by email to Lexi Conrad, LICSW, DMH Area Clinical Coordinator, at January 12, 2018. The primary contact person identified on the application will be notified by January 26, 2018 regarding the status of the applications.

Questions/Technical Assistance:

Please contact Lexi Conrad at 774-420-3167 if you have any questions.