Earlier this year, Ginger Lavender-Wilkerson, Clinical Program Manager at Children’s Institute, was wrapping up a call when she received a report about a recent gun-related homicide in Watts. She left the phone call and scheduled a meeting with an official at the elementary school near the crime scene. Later in the day, she would speak with her contacts at LAPD and the LA City Attorney’s Office to identify kids who witnessed the homicide and may need counseling.

Based out of CII’s Watts Campus, Lavender-Wilkerson said that her role rarely has a typical day, but her one constant is working alongside a wide array of community leaders, public officials and residents in and around Watts. By her estimation, she interacts with upwards of 50 external partners or community members in a single week.

As one of the four CII Values, partnership is essential to almost every role within the organization, but it is especially central to Lavender-Wilkerson’s work. She simply couldn’t do her job without utilizing the knowledge and expertise of other professionals.

“We don’t have all the answers at CII, but there are partners in our community who can help us fill in the blanks,” she said. “Without a strong approach to partnership, none of this would happen.”

In 2009, when Lavender-Wilkerson started at CII as a therapy intern in Watts, she was just getting to know the area while finishing her counseling degree at Mount Saint Mary’s University, Los Angeles.

In those early days, she noticed how Watts had a high concentration of government, faith-based and nonprofit initiatives, but that there was limited collaboration between these services. Families, who had endured generations of adversity, were only getting partial access to resources because organizations had not built effective partnerships. Referrals were being missed in areas like health care expansion, poverty reduction and crime prevention.

Without a strong approach to partnership, none of this would happen.

Ginger Lavender-Wilkerson, Clinical program Manager at CII

Today, Lavender-Wilkerson proudly describes her day-to-day as a positive evolution in the way CII collaborates with other organizations to serve Watts. This level of cooperation highlights a shift in the way crucial services are being accessed and demonstrates the heightened enthusiasm around partnership between service organizations.

This push for substantive partnerships comes during a time when Watts is in need of extra support. The area, which is one of LA’s smallest neighborhoods, has experienced high levels of crime and violence during the first half of 2019. Both shootings and homicide are up from the previous year.

Much of Lavender-Wilkerson’s emphasis on partnership focuses on developing a response to these events. She splits her work between two separate initiatives, The REACH TEAM and Community Innovations. Both involve work with multiple organizations and government partners who share important seats at the table when it comes to decision-making on community initiatives and region-wide activism.

In Community Innovations, CII works closely with Partners for Children South LA, Watts Leadership Institute and Saint John’s Child Wellness Center to expand services that will help residents in Watts heal from decades of trauma.

The collaboration combines the expertise of more than 40 different nonprofits to understand the unique needs of communities that experience trauma and the factors that contribute to them. As Lavender-Wilkerson puts it, Community Innovations is designed to empower the citizens of Watts to become a trauma-informed community, link children and families to resources that help them heal from existing exposure and hopefully, limit future activity that leads to trauma.

When Lavender-Wilkerson is not answering calls or attending meetings for Community Innovations, she is partnering with LAPD and the LA City Attorney’s Office to reduce the impact of trauma on children and families exposed to gun violence through The REACH TEAM.

Lavender-Wilkerson leads CII’s efforts while receiving support from Care Coordinator Eztli Herrera-Gardea and therapist Maria Reyes. The team responds anytime there are reports of shots fired in Watts and provides free counseling services to children who may have seen or heard the shooting.

I feel extremely lucky to have found a partner in Ginger, who deeply understands and appreciates the needs of these children and families we are helping in South LA through The REACH TEAM

Lara Drino, LA Deputy City Attorney Lara Drino

To do this work, the team is in constant contact with local schools, housing projects, Watts Gang Task Force and churches so they have a reliable group of sources who can share information about the people or areas of the city that may have been affected by a shooting. These key connections also help reduce residents saying no to services because of stigma tied to counseling.

With LAPD and the LA City Attorney’s office as the primary external partners with The REACH TEAM, Lavender-Wilkerson is constantly in contact with Lieutenant Gena Brooks of LAPD, and CII member of CII’s Board of Trustees, and Deputy City Attorney Lara Drino. The three are on the phone sharing details on weekends or sending text updates throughout the week at any time of day or night.

Drino said Lavender-Wilkerson has been a great partner in growing The REACH TEAM’s connection to Watts.

“I feel extremely lucky to have found a partner in Ginger, who deeply understands and appreciates the needs of these children and families we are helping in South LA through The REACH TEAM,” Drino said.

Lavender-Wilkerson said she expects the number of people she works with on both Initiatives to grow. While it may mean more phone calls and meetings, it also means the number of people in Watts accessing these services is growing too.

“This is hard yet rewarding work. It requires a certain skill set that is adaptable to the population it serves, ” Lavender-Wilkerson said. “We’re becoming more and more embedded in this community and these key relationships are growing.”

On Wednesday, the Individualized Transition Skills Program (ITSP) at Children’s Institute came together for a special trip to The Broad in downtown Los Angeles. The visit to the famed contemporary art museum served as a chance for foster youth in the program to see the incredible art collection for the first time while building important bonds with peers with similar experiences in the foster care system.

The group of 30 youth, who ranged from 16-21 years old, were excited to take advantage of the trip and see a portion of the more than 2,000 pieces of artwork The Broad has on display between their private collection and secure vault. Moments after entering, the group appreciated some of the more famous pieces like a Jean-Michel Basquiat painting or the giant inflatable dog by Jeff Koons. The group was especially engaged touring the special exhibit Souls of Nation: Art in the Age of Black Power.

Cynthia, an 19-year-old in ITSP, moved through the museum with peers Alice and Alexis and their Transitional Development Specialist Alejandra Bueno. While standing near a giant canvas about female empowerment, Cynthia said she had never seen art like this before. More than the art, she said she appreciated getting the opportunity to hang out with other foster youth in a unique setting.

The main thing is that they get to be around their peers and hang out with youth like them.

Julio Cruz, ITSP Program Supervisor

“We are really spending quality time with each other,” she said.

ITSP works with youth who are preparing to age out of the foster care system. The program is designed to motivate and empower youth to achieve academic and professional success through one-on-one support from counselors that double as advocates and mentors. Youth in foster care are a population that struggles when transitioning to adulthood. Less than 13 percent attend college and more than 40 percent experience homelessness at some point in their lives. As a testament to the program’s success, ITSP celebrated 94 percent of their youth graduating high school and making plans to attend college in May.

Julio Cruz, ITSP Program Supervisor, said outings to places like The Broad are important to expose youth to things like art, but also serve as an opportunity for them to simply connect with other foster youth. He said that foster youth don’t always get to hang out with each other and it is nice to be with people who have gone through similar experiences. The unique circumstances of entering foster care can sometimes be hard to discuss with classmates who have not endured this type of trauma.

 “The main thing is that they get to be around their peers and hang out with youth like them,” he said.

Hajah, an 18-year-old in ITSP, spent most of her day navigating the museum with Justin Stewart, a Transitional Development Specialist at CII. She echoed Cynthia in appreciating the opportunity to meet other youth while getting to take part in a new experience.

I feel like this is one of our best outings, because it exposes them to something they don’t normally see while also letting them relax.

Justin Stewart, ITSP Transitional Development Specialist

“It’s different. I haven’t seen anything like this before and I really like it,” she said. “Being at The Broad has given me a chance to reach out to people I don’t normally get to interact with and that’s cool.”

Stewart said he was seeing a different side of the youth at the museum. During the year, he works with Hajah and other youth on a number of academic or professional skills. These sessions are important, but can be serious.

“I feel like this is one of our best outings, because it exposes them to something they don’t normally see while also letting them relax,” he said.

In August, the group will be attending a Los Angeles Sparks game together. They’re already looking forward to connecting and spending more time together.

The early childhood development approach seems simple – when a member of the family is absent, children miss out on key development milestones. Yet at the Fatherhood Solution Conference held by Children’s Institute’s Project Fatherhood last week, childhood experts gathered for the 12^th year to discuss how fatherhood involvement could be increased across their field. As the point was brought up frequently throughout the day, fathers have long been undervalued by public and private institutions tasked with caring for at-risk families.

The conference, which was held inside the Westin Hotel near Los Angeles International Airport, brought together over 400 professionals that ranged from LA County Department of Children and Family Services staff to leaders and program participants in father-specific services. Keynote speakers included DCFS Deputy Director Angel Parks-Pyles, University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Social Work Assistant Professor Dr. Tova Walsh, and Los Angeles City Council President Herb J. Wesson. 

Dr. Walsh, who has spent more than a decade researching fathers and their impact on children, said many systems that support at-risk families have made it difficult for dads to stay involved. Whether during custody decisions or family therapy sessions, it is not uncommon for fathers to feel left out.

“We know that when fathers are included in positive ways, they will be associated with better outcomes in multiple areas,” Dr. Walsh said. “We need to support fathers and create programs that are thoughtfully designed with fathers at the center of them.”

Nationally, 17.8 million children, or roughly one in four kids, live without their dads. During her presentation, Dr. Walsh explained that when fathers are involved, children develop better socially, emotionally and mentally. Through high school, children with present fathers have better outcomes in school and lower rates of teen pregnancies.

Parks-Pyles, who spoke on behalf of DCFS director Bobby Cagle, highlighted many ways the department has partnered with Project Fatherhood to correct some of the gaps. This included specialized trainings with staff along with cofounding the Los Angeles Fatherhood Network, a collaboration that interfaces with 60-plus organizations to address barriers for father involvement. The broader partnership model between Project Fatherhood and DCFS is something Parks-Pyles noted is being replicated on a national level by other public child welfare agencies.

We need to support fathers and create programs that are thoughtfully designed with fathers at the center of them.

Tova Walsh, University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Social Work Assistant Professor

“Through training, every new social worker must be proficient with father engagement,” she said. “To date, Project Fatherhood, in partnership with our training division, has trained over 300 new hires.”

Keith Parker, Director of Project Fatherhood, has led the program since November 2018 and believes there is an immediate need to address the challenges fathers face. “The fatherhood conference is an opportunity to engage stakeholders across the fatherhood field and to recognize our work with fathers from all walks of life by sending one clear message that fatherhood involvement is shaping the next generation,” he said.

This year the conference honored 16 Project Fatherhood participants by inducting them into the Fatherhood Hall of Fame.  Dr. Edward Berumen, Program Supervisor with Project Fatherhood, said the Hall of Fame recognizes fathers for their long-term participation in the program. To be eligible, fathers had to be currently active in Project Fatherhood and completed 100 group sessions over three years.

“We’re hoping as we move forward that more fathers will want to join,” Dr. Berumen said. “It’s been rewarding to see all of the hard work these men have done together.”

Hall of Famer Jaime, who has participated in Project Fatherhood for eight years, said many of the dads in the program never knew their own fathers. He said the program addressed the challenges they faced in their own childhoods to make them stronger parents. The award was an acknowledgement of just how far they had come.

“To be able to help our kids, we fathers need to be helped first,” he said.

Another Hall of Fame inductee, Evan, has been part of the program for six years and currently serves as a facilitator for weekly group discussions with dads. He said many of the fathers enter the program having lost custody of their kids and feel isolated and alone. The Hall of Fame represents the transformation that happens when dads receive the right support.

The fatherhood conference is an opportunity to engage stakeholders across the fatherhood field and to recognize our work with fathers from all walks of life by sending one clear message that fatherhood involvement is shaping the next generation.

Keith Parker, Project Fatherhood Director

“It’s seeing guys come in broken and watching them create a bond with one another to become better dads,” he said. “There is no amount of money in the world that can beat the joy of watching this process up close.”

Wesson said that being a father is vastly more important than being Speaker of the Assembly or City Council President.  As an African-American, he described the challenges of raising a son in a world where young men of color are frequently targeted by the police.  He also talked about Camp Wesson, which takes 150 kids camping each summer. 

“The most important thing to a child is to know you love them and approve of them,” he said.

Learn more about Project Fatherhood here.

When McGyver first became a father 10 years ago, he wanted a different relationship with his children than he experienced with his own dad. McGyver believes his dad was a good person, but lacked the ability to have an intimate relationship with his kids. He grew up feeling something was always missing.

Now a father of four living in South Los Angeles, McGyver is preparing for his 10^th Father’s Day as a parent. The holiday is an opportunity to reflect on what he has accomplished as a dad and how he has worked to be a constant presence in the lives of his kids. This has meant blocking out weekends for uninterrupted family time and fully embracing whatever activities his kids find interesting.

His focus on being a more involved father is what led McGyver originally to sign-up for Children’s Institute’s Project Fatherhood. McGyver, whose youngest son and daughter are enrolled in CII’s Head Start programs, learned about Project Fatherhood a few months ago while attending a health fair and felt the program resonated with his own beliefs about being a dad.

“What fatherhood really means is being there to grow up alongside my kids,” he says. “I’ve wanted to be heavily involved in their lives from the get go and have them know that their dad is always behind them.”

This Father’s Day will mark Project Fatherhood’s 23^rd year supporting dads in their approach to parenting. The program works with a range of dads – those, like McGyver, who seek out the program voluntarily, as well as fathers who are court-mandated to join due to claims of abuse or neglect in the home. Regardless of how men get there, Project Fatherhood staff promote a culture where dads are active participants in their family and serve as a constant support to their kids.

Project Fatherhood fills a crucial gap. Nationally, 19.7 million children, or roughly one in four, live without a father, and few programs exist that focus on the needs of parenting men.  Program Director Keith Parker says it’s important to understand that the role of father is not optional in families, observing that, “Father’s Day honors the essential role of fathers in their children’s lives.”

Dr. Hershel K. Swinger founded Project Fatherhood at CII in 1996 after observing the stigma around fatherhood in South LA that limited the involvement of dads in their children’s lives. Some fathers grew up with dads who practiced “tough love” – a way of parenting that often included physical or mental abuse – while others had no contact with their fathers.

What fatherhood really means is being there to grow up alongside my kids. I’ve wanted to be heavily involved in their lives from the get go and have them know that their dad is always behind them.

McGyver, CII Parent

Over the last 23 years, the program has reached more than 15,000 dads who have parented 23,000 children. The program fostered a successful partnership model with the Los Angeles Department of Child and Family Services that is being replicated on a national level.

Dr. Edward Berumen, Program Supervisor for Project Fatherhood, said Dr. Swinger was a visionary in understanding that investing in fathers could improve the abilities of families to overcome the challenges of poverty in South LA.

According to the National Institute for Children’s Health Quality, when fathers are involved during pregnancy, mothers have fewer complications. Throughout infancy and early childhood, a present and engaged father can make a major difference in a child’s social, emotional and mental development, and children with involved fathers have better outcomes in school and reduced risks of teen pregnancies.

“If you want to improve outcomes for children, you need to involve fathers,” Berumen says. “We need programs like Project Fatherhood that strengthen father involvement for the benefit of the whole family.”

Dr. Berumen said a Project Fatherhood’s success is due to networks of support among dads who gather in weekly group discussions to share their experiences and offer suggestions and support. Dr. Berumen and other Project Fatherhood staff facilitate these discussions, but let the fathers lead.

“Fathers walk away learning from people who have gone through similar experiences,” he says. “They go home and use what they’ve learned to improve their relationship with their own families.”

Johnnie has been going to the Project Fatherhood group discussions for three years and said they have transformed the way he parents his 4-year old daughter. Johnnie said many of the dads in his group grew up with absent or abusive fathers and find the groups to be a safe space where they feel comfortable talking about their histories of trauma.

If you want to improve outcomes for children, you need to involve fathers. We need programs like Project Fatherhood that strengthen father involvement for the benefit of the whole family.

Dr. Edward Berumen, Project Fatherhood Program Supervisor

“I didn’t grow up with a father, so I’m trying to be the example that I never had when I was a child,” Johnnie says. “I had challenges early on, but now I live for being a father.”

Project Fatherhood staff say many of the dads decide to stay in the group well after their children grow up, because they enjoy the bonds they’ve formed with other fathers and want to be mentors to new dads. One father has been involved in the groups for 19 years.

Michael, who has been a part of Project Fatherhood for several years, said he doesn’t know if he will still be attending the groups in 15 years, but does appreciates how the group helped him realize that good parenting never ends and there are always opportunities to make small tweaks. He said he wants to give that back to other fathers. “Because of Project Fatherhood, I am constantly learning about being a good father and learning different ways to improve myself,” he says.

McGyver said he carries a similar sentiment as he gets ready to join Project Fatherhood. Whether it is his first Father’s Day or his 20th, growing as a father is something that never ends.

“I’ve learned that having kids is not the same as being a father,” he said. “It takes a lot of work, but it is humbling to look at my kids and be amazed by them every single day.”  

While summer vacation has just started for kids across Los Angeles, Children’s Institute’s early childhood educators are making sure their students don’t miss out on learning opportunities during the long break. Though Summer Slide sounds like a thrilling amusement park attraction, the term refers to the decline in reading and other academic skills that occurs when school is not in session – particularly for low income students.  

Unlike more affluent children who participate in camps and other enrichment activities, many children served by CII spend their summer indoors, watching TV or playing video games.  By the time they return to school in the fall, they’ve fallen behind, exacerbating the achievement gap, and may spend months catching up to their peers.  

But there are opportunities everywhere for children to learn throughout vacation.  Dalila Rodriguez, Director of Early Childhood Education at Children’s Institute, says learning during the summer isn’t a luxury only wealthy families can afford. A number of free community resources make it easier for low income children to keep up with their peers over the summer months, and there are many activities parents can do with their kids to spark learning.

Many of CII’s Early Childhood Education programs avoid the Summer Slide altogether.  Some centers close for only two weeks, minimizing out of school time and allowing parents to maintain their regular work schedules. At centers that follow a traditional school schedule, CII’s monthly parent groups continue during the summer months even when the centers are closed. This way families can share strategies for keeping children engaged and access free community resources and tips to keep their children learning.

Daniela Troya, Senior Early Childhood Services Manager, says CII teachers use summer to reinforce that parents should always be active participants in their child’s education. While children are vulnerable to falling behind during school breaks, parents involved in learning year-round help create better academic outcomes for their kids.

“Families are lifelong teachers and we want to promote that,” Rodriguez says. “Summer is a really good time to remind parents about how important it is to spend time with their kids and help with the learning process.”

Here are some helpful tips CII recommends to ensure students continue to learn outside of the classroom.

Sean Anders, the writer and director of last year’s hit film Instant Family, addressed an audience of high school seniors dressed in matching maroon gowns at Children’s Institute’s third annual Dream BIG Graduation last Friday. At the end of each school year, graduation scenes like this play out across Los Angeles, celebrating young people marking this important milestone on the path to adulthood. What’s different about the group listening to Anders is that every single graduate was earning their diploma while in foster care.

Anders, who created Instant Family after he and his wife Elizabeth adopted three siblings from the foster care system, understands the challenges and remarkable achievement of the 107 graduates. Nationally, youth growing up in foster care are three times likelier than their peers to drop out of high school, fewer than 13 percent will attend college and only 3 percent will earn a college degree. By contrast, every student participating in the 2019 Dream BIG Graduation was heading off to college in the fall.

“The truth is you have a lot of mountains ahead of you to climb, but you have already climbed incredible mountains to be where you are today,” Anders said. “You have already proven so much.”

This year’s Dream Big Graduation was full of such affirmations from foster youth advocates like Jessica Chandler, an LA County social worker and former foster youth who was recently featured in the HBO documentary Foster, joined Anders in celebrating the Dream BIG Graduates. Other speakers included former foster youth Sandra, currently a student at Pasadena City College, and Candi Marie and Maraide Green who worked with Anders on Instant Family.

At the end of the ceremony CII’s Board Chair Paul Kanin presented the graduates with a fully loaded dorm kit to ensure the students begin their college journey in style. The rolling suitcases filled with bedding and other supplies were provided by Random Act Funding, founded by Susan and Robert Downey Jr, and CII’s support group The CHIPS, who also sponsored the event. The evening concluded with a celebratory BBQ dinner catered by Donny Joubert of the Watts Gang Task Force.

I hope you all will come back here and have the opportunity to show people what you are capable of.

Jessica Chandler, DCFS Social Worker and Foster Youth Advocate

Each graduate at Dream BIG participates in CII’s Individualized Transition Skills Program (ITSP)which supports academic and professional success for teens and young adults who are aging out of foster care.

Due to instability and a lack of support, youth aging out of foster care are far likelier to be chronically unemployed with almost 40 percent experiencing homelessness within 18 months of leaving the system. Yet this year’s Dream BIG Graduation boasted a 94 percent graduation rate for youth in CII’s program. Each plan to attend a variety of colleges and universities next fall that include UCLA, USC and UC Berkeley.

ITSP Supervisor Julio Cruz said the Dream BIG Graduation serves as a reminder that youth in foster care can accomplish their goals when they receive proper support and guidance. Cruz said youth often fall behind academically in the foster care system because they move homes and schools frequently. It’s not uncommon for a foster youth to move between four different schools in a single year, which sets them up for failure. For those who do graduate high school without the support of ITSP, they receive little guidance on navigating the complexities of the college admission process or accessing financial aid.

When youth enter ITSP, they are behind in school and usually at risk of dropping out. They are assigned a counselor who serves as their personal advocate, partners with DCFS social workers to limit moves between schools and foster homes, and works with school officials to make sure all previous academic credits are counted. Counselors provide individualized support such as helping youth get a driver’s license or reviewing transcripts to determine the right course selection to graduate. As the youth get closers to finishing high school, ITSP counselors guide them through the process of college applications, financial aid and freshman housing.

The truth is you have a lot of mountains ahead of you to climb, but you have already climbed incredible mountains to be where you are today. You have already proven so much.

Sean Anders, Creator of the 2018 film Instant Family

Broadly, Cruz said the program emphasizes a culture where graduating high school and attending college is seen as achievable. He said the Dream BIG Graduation is the perfect example of this culture where younger youth in the program attend and see how many kids in the 2019 class were able to do it.

“We help show them that being a high school graduate and attending college is possible,” Cruz said. “We take them on college tours and have current students meet with older youth who have graduated.”

Sandra, a sophomore at Pasadena City College and 2017 Dream BIG Graduation alumnus, spoke at this year’s ceremony and credited ITSP for where she is today. She was on the verge of dropping out of high school after entering foster care mid-way through her sophomore year. At the time, Sandra said she felt isolated and alone before her ITSP counselor helped turn things around.

“I didn’t have anyone to help me with applying to school or jobs,” she said. “I would never have got this far without CII’s program.”

Jada, a 2019 Dream BIG graduate attending USC next year, said she was proud of her own accomplishments, but more importantly saw her experience as an opportunity to inspire others. USC ranks as the 22nd best undergraduate university in the country according to US News Best College Rankings. Jada said foster youth have a tendency to put a ceiling on their own potential when in fact they have the ability to accomplish a lot.

“It’s always a constant battle with ourselves,” she said. “It can be hard to cope with what we’ve experienced, but one of our major focuses should be on attending college and building our own personal support systems where we can succeed.”

It can be hard to cope with what we’ve experienced, but one of our major focuses should be on attending college and building our own personal support systems where we can succeed.

Jada, 2019 Dream BIG Graduate attending USC in the fall

Many of the youth participating in this year’s Dream BIG Graduation were first generation graduates in their own families. With the average college graduate expected to earn an average salary of $44,000 (compared to $25,000 for those without a high school diploma), Jada said it has never been more important to hold a college degree as a way of breaking the cycle of generational poverty. She said college isn’t only a pathway to higher earnings but it also offers foster youth a chance to enrich their lives by discovering what they are passionate about both academically and professionally.

Jessica Chandler, the social worker for the Los Angeles Department of Children and Family Services who was featured in the HBO documentary Foster, spoke to the graduates about her own doubts earning a bachelor’s and master’s degree in social work after she grew up in foster care. Chandler told them that they have the ability to earn degrees and be successful regardless of the path they took to get there.

“It doesn’t matter what you had to overcome or how close you were to not being here today, because you all made it,” she said. “I hope you all will come back here and have the opportunity to show people what you are capable of.”

Nathan, a 2019 Dream BIG graduate attending El Camino College this fall was ready to get started on his own college career and eventually earn a degree, but said being able to rely on ITSP will make a huge difference during his freshman year. While he has appreciated the extra guidance on applying to things like financial aid, he said having people he can call regardless of what is happening in his life will be the most important resource.

“It’s nice to have someone I can rely on whenever questions comes up,” he said. “And I know they will be checking in to make sure I’m not slacking, because everyone needs someone to keep you on track.”

Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) are stressful or traumatic events that children experience before age 18, such as violence at home, neglect, abuse, or having a parent with mental illness or substance dependence. High or frequent exposure to ACEs can dysregulate children’s stress response. Fortunately, the support of a caring adult can help buffer against stressful events for children.

Most of us – no matter who we are or where we come from – have experienced some level of adversity in our lives. However, there are wide ranges in the type, severity and frequency of adversity. If it is severe or chronic, it can cause changes to our bodies and may lead to significant health problems.

While 60% of the population reports having one or more ACEs in their own lives, families who grow up in neighborhoods plagued by violence and poverty tend to have more frequent and damaging exposure.  Dr. Nadine Burke Harris, California’s first-ever Surgeon General, recently appointed by Governor Gavin Newsom, has said childhood adversity “literally gets under our skin and has the potential to change our health.”

Stress responses are overactive in situations where ACEs are common and persistent like growing up in neighborhoods with high rates of community poverty and violence, or in a home where there is prolonged abuse, neglect or a parent with criminal or substance abuse issues. This affects brain development, immune systems and other parts of the body. The results over time are health problems, substance abuse and other high-risk behaviors, trouble staying focused, or completing tasks, school dropout and difficulty getting along with others – challenges that appear in childhood and last throughout adulthood. Often children who grow up with high ACEs scores also have parents who faced persistent childhood adversity leading to a cycle of trauma and intergenerational poverty.

CII engages children and families from an early age and provides practical skills and relationship-oriented interventions to promote self-regulation, instill hope, foster resilience, and build protective factors that limit the effects of ACEs.

Jesús Parra, Vice President of Behavioral Health & Wellness at CII

Research shows that some individuals with a high number of ACEs do not experience these health risks because they received support in the form of therapy or protective home environments, which points to the importance of early intervention, family strengthening and easy access to mental health and wellness programs.

Children’s Institute supports communities across Los Angeles where children and families are facing adversity caused by poverty and community violence. We provide high-quality Early Childhood Education in nurturing environments that support healthy development for children and offer a wide variety of supports for parents.  We work with kids who may have experienced trauma and connect them with counselors to promote emotional wellness.

Jesús Parra, Vice President of Behavioral Health & Wellness at CII, said early intervention paired with emotional and social support are key in preventing and healing trauma. He said that a high number of ACEs won’t dictate a child’s life as long as children receive loving support and feel safe in their family and community.

“Neuroscience helps us to understand how the presence of at least one healthy relationship can serve as a buffer for adversity that promotes self-regulation and builds resilience,” Parra said. “CII engages children and families from an early age and provides practical skills and relationship-oriented interventions to promote self-regulation, instill hope, foster resilience, and build protective factors that limit the effects of ACEs.”

May is Mental Health Awareness Month. If you are interested in learning more about mental health and wellness at Children’s Institute or need access to mental health services, please contact 213.807.1998 ext. 3433 or fet8@childrensinstitute.org.

Donny Joubert knew it was hard growing up in South Los Angeles, but he had not anticipated how bleak it was until the winter of 2005 when seven men were murdered over the span of one month. Joubert had always called Watts home. He was born and raised at the Nickerson Gardens housing development, and at the time, worked there as a member of the housing authority team.

In the weeks following the murders, neighbors shared with Joubert how little faith they had about living in Watts. Older residents said they never left their homes for fear of being victimized and children as young as seven told Joubert they didn’t envision a future where they made it to adulthood – and some didn’t even imagine living another year.

“These kids had seen their older siblings get shot so why would they want to invest any time in school when they felt like they wouldn’t make it to their next birthday?” Joubert asked.

As a response, Joubert led a coalition of residents to create the Watts Gang Task Force, which brought positive changes to policing and policy development by creating a space where all levels of the community worked together to make Watts safer. The last 14 years have seen a major drop in violent crimes thanks in part to the task force. Yet with persistent violence and residents who have trouble imagining a brighter future in Watts, Joubert and other residents see mental health services and wellness as a crucial piece to improving safety in their community.

Marion Dave, Vice President of Community Innovations at Children’s Institute, has been overseeing the next chapter in supporting safe and healthy families in Watts. CII’s Watts Campus is located in the center of the community and partners closely with the Task Force, LAPD, the city attorney’s office, and other nonprofits and faith-based groups that serve the region. From preschools in each of the neighborhood’s five housing developments, to early childhood home visitation services, to immediate support for children exposed to gun violence, CII has programs working at different levels in the community with a focus on mental health and well-being.

These kids had seen their older siblings get shot so why would they want to invest any time in school when they felt like they wouldn’t make it to their next birthday?

Donny Joubert, Co-founder of the Watts Gang Task Force

Dave said CII staff are focused on transforming Watts from a community struggling with the weight of toxic stress to partnering with residents, neighborhood advocates, and other organizations to enhance resiliency and self-sufficiency around mental health and wellbeing. While Watts and other parts of South LA have come a long way from the early 1990s when homicides peaked at over 1,000 annually across the city, there is a great deal of potential in emphasizing wellness to improve safety.

“Intergenerational trauma is what is happening in this community,” Dave said. “Kids are dealing with grief and loss that are not being addressed while parents are struggling with their own adversity and are not necessarily able to provide support for these challenges.”

Recent investment and public support for mental health and wellness have been bolstered by a growing body of research that has shown childhood trauma to be a public health crisis. Dr. Nadine Burke Harris, California’s first-ever Surgeon General who was appointed by Governor Gavin Newsom last January, has described childhood adversity as something that “literally gets under our skin and has the potential to change our health.”

Beginning with a groundbreaking Kaiser Permanente study from the 1990s that linked adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) to serious and long term health consequences, research in the last decade has included Dr. Burke Harris’ own transformative work. All demonstrate the correlation between traumatic early experiences, including community violence, leading to serious and persistent mental and physical health conditions.

Dr. Todd Sosna, Chief Program Officer at CII, said persistent stress can affect brain development in children and lead to lifelong health issues. Prolonged exposure to physical or mental abuse, parents struggling with substance abuse, or witnessing violence during childhood releases adrenaline and other hormones that impact healthy development.

“Our minds are designed to be self-healing,” Dr. Sosna said. “If a negative event persists, there is no opportunity to recover, and it becomes problematic if sustained for long periods of time.”

Toxic stress throughout childhood can result in behavioral issues for adults including substance abuse or struggling with education, employment and relationships. Challenges with depression, heart disease and severe obesity can plague mental and physical health. Dr. Sosna said toxic stress can make someone easily agitated, withdrawn or distracted as a reaction to the trauma they endured.

Kids are distressed when they hear about people getting shot. It is very difficult to quantify how many encounters they have with trauma and how many of those traumas they are dealing with at any given time.

Marion Dave, Vice President of Community Innovations at CII

Dave said in Watts, along with other marginalized communities, toxic stress and childhood adversity are higher and many residents fear being the victim of or witnessing a violent crime.

Since January, South LA has endured a spike in violent crime including a one week period where 29 people were shot and seven killed in gun-related incidents across the city. Many of the shootings happened around the housing developments in Watts, leaving residents on edge and facing increasing levels of toxic stress.

“Kids are distressed when they hear about people getting shot,” Dave said. “It is very difficult to quantify how many encounters they have with trauma and how many of those traumas they are dealing with at any given time.”

LAPD Captain Louis Paglialonga, the commanding officer for Southeast LA, said he has seen firsthand how inadequate support for mental health creates a cycle of violence in areas with high rates of crime.

“When kids are exposed to violence and think that it is normal, and they are unable to cope with what has happened, they are likelier to wind up on corners as members of gangs or become victims of crimes,” he said.

Dave said that to support the healing process, the cycle of trauma must be uprooted by helping people get support for their mental health needs while encouraging residents to practice mental wellness.

Just like many children, I began avoiding certain parts of my neighborhood out of fear of falling victim to gun violence. My family and I weren’t aware of any programs, where to go, or who to contact for assistance with coping with the anxiety and stress.

Congresswoman Nanette Diaz Barragán

“Mental wellness means you recognize what is happening to you and recognize what is happening to other people around you,” Dave said. “We’re trying to flip the script on what is considered ‘normal’ and show people that everybody deserves to be well.”

When Dave describes a trauma resilient community, she is talking about a place where residents get adequate support when they experience trauma, and providing services that prevent toxic stress.

Congresswoman Nanette Diaz Barragán, who represents California’s 44th Congressional District, which includes the communities of Watts, Compton and Florence-Firestone, said she remembers ducking under her kitchen table as a kid when she would hear the sounds of gunshots nearby.

“Growing up in the Harbor Gateway community, the sounds of gunshots, police sirens and helicopters were all too familiar,” Barragán said. “Just like many children, I began avoiding certain parts of my neighborhood out of fear of falling victim to gun violence. My family and I weren’t aware of any programs, where to go, or who to contact for assistance with coping with the anxiety and stress.”

Barragán said services that expand access to mental health and wellness support has led to South LA becoming a stronger and safer community.

Dave agrees with Barragán and said services like early childhood, mental health and family strengthening programs have been especially important in reducing the stigma around seeking out help. Dave said these higher levels of engagement reflect staff listening to the community and developing trust while learning directly from clients. She said this level of support around mental health and wellness points to a healthier South LA that is headed in a positive direction.

“Everybody needs support – everybody,” Dave said. “And everybody deserves to be well.”

May is Mental Health Awareness Month. If you are interested in learning more about mental health and wellness at Children’s Institute or need access to mental health services, please contact 213.807.1998 or fet8@childrensinstitute.org.

On May 18, over 1,000 kids and their families participated in family-friendly activities like yoga and rock climbing at Ted Watkins Memorial Park in Watts at the first ever Power of Wellness: Community Connections Kickoff Event. Participants also perused a resource fair of more than 55 providers, programs and services, including free HIV testing. The event was organized as part of Mental Health Awareness Month, promoting the role of prevention, social support and connection in overall wellness.

Robin Leach, Community Education & Outreach Supervisor at CII, said the Community Connections Kickoff event was designed to reduce stigma around accessing mental health services by showing residents they are not alone in experiencing pain or stress from community violence. More importantly, she said residents have the tools to support each other as they heal and help make South LA a safer place.

Over 1,000 kids and their families participated in family-friendly activities at the Power of Wellness: Community Connections Kickoff Event.

“There are resource fairs almost every week in South LA, but this one is different because residents are driving the process to connect and find community solutions,” Leach said. “They are the difference and we’re all working together so everyone can learn how to support each other.”

Gustavo Medrano, Community Affairs Specialist for CII, works on the team that organized Saturday’s event and said there shouldn’t be a stigma around mental health. He said it is important for everyone to see the process of prioritizing good mental health as a positive.

“We really want to reduce the number of people who might feel isolated and unsure about needing help,” he said. “We’re here to show our families they’re not alone. We’re ready to support and collaborate with them.”

Families participated in a number of activities that promoted health and wellness like yoga and rock climbing at Ted Watkins Park in Watts.

Reggie Simms, a life-long resident of Watts who attended the event on Saturday, said that he has personally noticed that when violence is high, people are too scared to do simple tasks like take out their garbage for fear of becoming the victim of a crime. He said the Kickoff worked as an opportunity to remind people that they are not alone in wanting to live in a neighborhood where they feel safe.

“Crime and violence have kept people in their houses, so this type of event brings people outside and brings hope and faith to the community,” Simms said.  

In addition to the 50-plus community resource providers, the event was co-organized by Power of Wellness and Project ABC, both child-focused collaborations led by CII. Project ABC is a partnership with the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) designed to create a system of care for children living in LA who would benefit from mental health services. The group normally holds a mental health event in May, but decided to combine this year’s event with the Power of Wellness, which is a newly formed collective of organizations with the shared purpose of empowering communities and building resiliency by promoting wellness and connection. The partners include CII, Partners for Children South L.A., St. John’s Well Child & Family Clinic, Watts Leadership Institute, and the Department of Mental Health.

The Power of Wellness collective works together to build trauma-resilient communities in South LA, meaning residents can recognize trauma and adequately address those experiences through social and therapeutic support and community resources. The collaboration is also designed to better connect different services across South LA so nonprofits work together when serving a family.

More than 50 community resource partners serving South LA participated in the event.

Research shows that adults who experience higher levels of traumatic events during childhood struggle in adulthood with education, employment and personal relationships. Trauma can also affect their physical health with increased rates of depression, diabetes and heart disease cause my stress. With early intervention, the impact of trauma can be reduced and children can protect themselves from the damages of future traumatic events.

Liza Bray, Director of Partners for Children South Los Angeles, helped organize Saturday’s event and defined wellness as a way of moving families from a place of crisis to where they can be self-sufficient. She said accomplishing this involves all organizations combing resources and working together.

“Collaborating at events like this is so important for us to serve the whole family,” Bray said. “It’s really powerful for organizations to come together and work outside their silos for the better good of the children, family and for the community.”

May is Mental Health Awareness Month. If you are interested in learning more about mental health and wellness at Children’s Institute or need access to mental health services, please contact Ginger Lavender Wilkerson, Clinical Program Manager, 323.523.8608 or glavender-wilkerson@childrensinstitute.org.

The focus of the C.H.I.P.S. annual Spring Fashion Luncheon was the combined impact of philanthropy and community activism in South Los Angeles. Known as the setting for the Golden Globe Awards and frequent celebrity sightings, the Beverly Hilton Hotel instead was abuzz yesterday with celebrations of those who have dedicated their lives to combating gun violence, trauma and poverty.

The C.H.I.P.S. raise funds and awareness for Children’s Institute and its programs that promote resiliency and growth in communities plagued by poverty. The group, founded in 1966, has increasingly featured hard hitting subjects at its elegant events, and attendees leave wanting to do more in their community, according to Bridget Gless Keller, a CII Trustee and longstanding member of C.H.I.P.S.

The Watts Gang Task Force accepts the C.H.I.P.S. Inspiration Award at the Spring Luncheon.

Keller, who presented the C.H.I.P.S. Inspiration award to the Watts Gang Task Force, said the group has continued a positive tradition of selecting honorees who are inspiring, selfless and investing their time and resources in unique ways. By honoring philanthropists Alex Tuttle and Tiffany Tuttle, and the Watts Gang Task Force, Keller said they were putting a spotlight on the challenges poverty creates in South LA while applauding people who are working to support these communities.

“It was a very authentic day,” Keller said. “By celebrating the Watts Gang Task Force here, we are bringing Watts closer to the rest of Los Angeles.”

The Watts Gang Task Force, which was founded in 2005 during a period of intense violence, loss and grief, was honored for helping to broker peace between residents and law enforcement. Their efforts, which continue to this day, resulted in substantial drops in homicide and other violent crimes. In recent years, CII has worked closely with the task force to expand support for mental health and trauma resiliency.

It was a very authentic day. By celebrating the Watts Gang Task Force here, we are bringing Watts closer to the rest of Los Angeles.

Bridget Gless Keller, CII Trustee and longstanding member of C.H.I.P.S.

Joining the task force on stage during the award ceremony was Michelle Chambers, Senior Field Deputy for Assembly Member Mike Gibson, Norchelle Brown, Policy Assistant for Congresswoman Nanette Diaz Barragán, and Ami Field-Meyer, West Area Representative for Mayor Garcetti.

Donny Joubert, who cofounded the task force and grew up in the Nickerson Garden housing development in Watts, said the group was launched after hearing residents say they were scared to leave their houses due to high levels of crime. Over its 14 years of existence, he said there has been a 90% drop in crime around Watts and better dialogue between the city and residents. While he is proud of these accomplishments, he never imagined it would lead to recognition and awards.

“We are really honored to be selected because an award like this means we are making change in the community,” Joubert said.

Philanthropists Tiffany Tuttle (left) and Alex Tuttle (right) pose with CII President & CEO Martine Singer before being honored with the C.H.I.P.S. Philanthropic Service Award.

In addition, Alex and Tiffany Tuttle received the C.H.I.P.S. Philanthropic Service Award. The sisters were recognized for their longstanding philanthropic support of CII along with their hands-on involvement with kids and families. The Tuttle sisters have been involved in multiple CII initiatives, including recent support for youth who are ageing out of foster care and need tools and support for a stable and successful transition to adulthood.

Tiffany Tuttle said receiving an award is great, but more importantly it provides a platform to encourage others to come together and support nonprofits like CII.

“This award is really about getting young people involved,” she said. “Alex and I believe in this work wholeheartedly and it was great to see so many different CII programs highlighted.”

Lisa Morgan, President of C.H.I.P.S., said, “It is both humbling and inspiring to see the dedication of our honorees. Each one of them offering the best of themselves with no expectation of anything in return and purely out of love and a desire to help others.”

It is both humbling and inspiring to see the dedication of our honorees. Each one of them offering the best of themselves with no expectation of anything in return and purely out of love and a desire to help others.

Lisa Morgan, President of C.H.I.P.S.

The C.H.I.P.S. have a long history of honoring community-based groups and individuals at their annual luncheon, which past years included police lieutenants, public officials and philanthropists. The group chose to open this year’s luncheon with an introduction from LaRae Cantley, a CII program participant who shared her story about the support she received through CII.

Martine Singer, President & CEO of CII, said the longstanding support from the C.H.I.P.S. has been important to addressing poverty in South LA. The group is currently helping with the Dream Big Graduation at the end of May, an event that celebrates foster youth from across Los Angeles who are graduating high school and attending college in the fall. The C.H.I.P.S. are helping to provide essential items like backpacks to outfit the kids and their dorms for freshman year.

“Groups like the C.H.I.P.S. are about supporting CII and believing in our mission,” Singer said. “It doesn’t matter how different the programs are, they rally behind CII and make a major difference in our work.”