The Center for Law and Social Policy (CLASP) recently recognized EWDD’s YouthSource Peer-to-Peer Counseling Program, which will train youth to provide mental health support to youth ages 18-24. The program, which will be launched later this year, is designed to create a pipeline for youth to pursue careers in mental health services. An excerpt of the article, which explains how the program works, is included below.
CLASP’s mental health work has consistently shown that young people strongly prefer to receive support from peers and help in trusted, community-based settings, including youth workforce development programs. Research has also shown that youth workforce system leaders and providers feel their programs are unprepared to meet the mental health needs of their participants, who have disproportionately experienced trauma because of community violence, financial strain, racism and discrimination, or histories of child welfare and criminal legal system involvement. CLASP’s mental health work has consistently shown that young people strongly prefer to receive support from peers in trusted community settings, including youth workforce development programs.
The City of Los Angeles operates 14 YouthSource Centers that serve as hubs for youth workforce development programs. As part of this new program to support mental health, each center will recruit 3 to 5 young people ages 18-24 to participate in a Youth Peer Support Certification program. Participants will be paid $16.75 per hour to complete 300 hours of certification training. The participants will spend about one-third of these hours taking LA County’s Department of Mental Health peer support certification curriculum. They will also be required to spend 200 practicum hours providing mental health support— including assistance navigating the mental health system, referral to services, and other support as needed— to other young people accessing youth workforce services through the center.
Upon completion of the program, certified youth peer specialists will be eligible for hire as Medicaid-reimbursable providers through the county’s Department of Mental Health. The partnership between the youth workforce system and the county-level mental health system in LA County demonstrates an expansion of mental health care for opportunity youth enrolled in workforce development programs while also building career opportunities for young people who want to provide much-needed support to their peers.
Read the complete Center for Law and Social Policy (CLASP) Peer-to-Peer Counseling Program article for more information.
Learn more about the many programs and benefits offered to the young people of Los Angeles through EWDD Youth Services and the YouthSource Centers.
CLASP’s mental health work has consistently shown that young people strongly prefer to receive support from peers and help in trusted, community-based settings, including youth workforce development programs. Research has also shown that youth workforce system leaders and providers feel their programs are unprepared to meet the mental health needs of their participants, who have disproportionately experienced trauma because of community violence, financial strain, racism and discrimination, or histories of child welfare and criminal legal system involvement. CLASP’s mental health work has consistently shown that young people strongly prefer to receive support from peers in trusted community settings, including youth workforce development programs.
The City of Los Angeles operates 14 YouthSource Centers that serve as hubs for youth workforce development programs. As part of this new program to support mental health, each center will recruit 3 to 5 young people ages 18-24 to participate in a Youth Peer Support Certification program. Participants will be paid $16.75 per hour to complete 300 hours of certification training. The participants will spend about one-third of these hours taking LA County’s Department of Mental Health peer support certification curriculum. They will also be required to spend 200 practicum hours providing mental health support— including assistance navigating the mental health system, referral to services, and other support as needed— to other young people accessing youth workforce services through the center.
Upon completion of the program, certified youth peer specialists will be eligible for hire as Medicaid-reimbursable providers through the county’s Department of Mental Health. The partnership between the youth workforce system and the county-level mental health system in LA County demonstrates an expansion of mental health care for opportunity youth enrolled in workforce development programs while also building career opportunities for young people who want to provide much-needed support to their peers.
Read the complete Center for Law and Social Policy (CLASP) Peer-to-Peer Counseling Program article for more information.
Learn more about the many programs and benefits offered to the young people of Los Angeles through EWDD Youth Services and the YouthSource Centers.
This story is part of the EWDD UPDATES from the week of June 19, 2023. Read this issue and more.