Mental Illness: Training Our Community

Topic: NAMI is a grassroots organization offering individuals and their families, caregivers, friends and others whose lives are impacted by mental illness help, hope and education necessary to provide recovery. NAMI Brazos Valley is an affiliate of NAMI Texas and NAMI National organizations.

NAMI Brazos Valley provides support and resources to the seven-county central Texas area encompassing a rather large area with numerous citizens. Incorporated in 1996, requests for NAMI BV to provide educational trainings are growing and with just two part-time employees it makes for a challenge of staff time and money. Therefore, NAMI-BV must determine which training is needed for each group. Volunteers, staff and paid subcontractors are contacted as needed to teach once which training is determined. Each instructor NAMI-BV provides is highly trained according to NAMI National and NAMI Texas requirements; be it the 40hr signature courses and Mental Health First Aid curriculum or the 8-hour partnership training and each must maintain a strict fidelity.

Occasionally, a specific audience training must be developed. NAMI Brazos Valley prides itself in offering the most current science and research to date in those trainings. Stigma is our largest hurdle and we continue to transcend it higher and higher with each training.

Our Speaker:

Jody Schulz became Executive Director March 10, 2014 at NAMI Brazos Valley. NAMI, the National Alliance on Mental Illness, is an international grassroots organization whose mission is to provide help, hope and education to those whose lives are affected by mental health disorders. She teaches many of the free evidence based classes as well as Mental Health First Aid in Adult, Youth and Law Enforcement versions.

Food: Cold, mini sandwiches on potato slider buns (Roasted Turkey & Ham-Salami, with provolone, shredded lettuce and Roma tomato). American Potato Salad, pickles, and chocolate chip cookies.

This program maps to ATD's Foundational Competency: Knowledge Management. Visit https://www.td.org/Certification/Competency-Model.