Why Healing-Centered Mentoring™?
The demand for child mental health services, including those provided by psychologists, counselors, and social workers, has long exceeded the supply; this trend is expected to continue or worsen unless substantial structural changes are made in how mental health services are provided (Society for Community Research and Action, 2021). Through a Healing-Centered Mentoring™ approach, YMC seeks to arm as many helping professionals as possible with the evidence-based tools necessary to bridge our society’s broadening chasm between those youth who need mental health support and those who can access it. Because mentoring already draws on a wide array of established therapeutic techniques, research has shown that mentoring can be leveraged to reduce mental health stigma—especially for youth and families who mistrust mental health services—to support the expansion of mentoring initiatives that promote the health and well-being of young people and families most impacted by systems of oppression.
In addition, because helping professionals are prone to burnout, and many have experienced trauma, YMC hopes that Healing-Centered Mentoring™ strategies can be used to support the restoration of their own well-being.
We believe Healing-Centered Mentoring™ represents the future of the field and has significant implications for how mentoring will be approached moving forward.
Meet the Healing-Centered Mentoring™ Fellows
The Healing-Centered Mentoring™ Fellows are a dynamic, multidisciplinary group of leaders who are dedicated to improving the implementation of specific mentoring standards and practices through the increased use of evidence-based practices and technology that protects and promotes the mental health and psychosocial wellbeing of youth. Together, they will bridge our society’s broadening chasm between those youth who need mental health support and those who can access it.
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Our Guiding Principles
Learn more about how YMC conducts our work through the lens of racial equity.
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