A Behavioral Health Initiative Project
Project Goal
The Grow Our Own Behavioral Health Providers project is working to expand the behavioral health provider pipeline across the region by increasing awareness among high school aged students on the behavioral health field, degree programs, and career opportunities through educational presentations and mentorship opportunities.
Targeted Problem
Numerous challenges have led to the shortage of behavioral health providers across the region, including housing and childcare shortages, low insurance reimbursement rates, and non-competitive pay rates. This shortage of providers has negatively impacted the mental health of those who live in northwest Michigan, as individuals are unable to find a provider to address their needs.
Our Collective Work
To expand the behavioral health provider workforce, this project provides high school students across the region with the opportunity to learn from current behavioral health professionals through panel presentations that are brought into schools. These presentations allow students to learn about the behavioral health field, degree options, and career opportunities. Interested students are also invited to apply to become a Behavioral Health Fellow. Fellows will be matched with a mentor who is a current professional in the field and have access to additional educational opportunities that will allow them to further explore degree and career options and build skills needed by behavioral health professionals.
Apply to Become a Behavioral Health Fellow
High school students who participate in the Grow Our Own Behavioral Health Providers initiative as a fellow will be matched with a mentor who is a practicing professional in northwest Michigan. As a fellow, students will learn about career readiness opportunities and explore their career interests within the behavioral health field. Each fellow is matched with a mentor for the duration of at least one academic semester.
Behavioral Health Fellows will:
- Meet with their assigned mentor at least 3 times within an academic semester, either virtually or in-person.
- Participate in at least one educational and/or job shadowing opportunity per semester that will allow them to develop skills needed by behavioral health professionals.
- Explore and consider applying to behavioral health-related higher education degree programs.
Be invited to participate in a youth action team that promotes mental health and well-being among youth and children in northwest Michigan.
Apply to Become a Behavioral Health Mentor
Mentors who participate in the Grow Our Own Behavioral Health Providers initiative are professionals from northwest Michigan who are interested in engaging with high school students on career readiness opportunities and helping them to explore their career interests within the behavioral health field. Each mentor is matched with one high school fellow who is interested in exploring a behavioral health-related degree program and career for one academic semester.
- Meet with their assigned fellow 3 times within an academic semester, either virtually or in-person, or over the phone,
- Help their fellow explore behavioral health-related degree and career opportunities, including scholarship opportunities and loan repayment programs.
Connect their fellow to at least one educational and/or job shadowing opportunity per semester that will allow them to develop skills needed by behavioral health professionals.
Host a Behavioral Health Professional Panel Presentation in Your School
Behavioral Health Professional Panel Presentations consist of 2-3 professionals who will:
- Provide high school students with knowledge on the behavioral health field, degree options, and career pathways.
- Share personal stories on why and how they came to work in the field.
- Introduce students to the opportunity to become a Behavioral Health Fellow.
Panel presentations can take place as assemblies, in psychology classes, as part of Career Tech programs, and more!
Project Partners:
- Action Team Partners: The Recruit Behavioral Health Providers Action Team, which will guide the design and implementation of the project, is made up of cross sector stakeholders representing mental health services organizations, local schools, universities, school-based mental health professionals, public health departments, and hospital systems.
- Intermediate School District (ISD) Partners: Current ISD partners include Charlevoix-Emmet ISD, Traverse City Area Public Schools, Wexford-Missaukee ISD, and Manistee ISD.
- Behavioral Health Fellow Mentor Partners: Partners serving as mentors to students who enroll in the behavioral health fellow program include behavioral health professionals with diverse career experiences and educational backgrounds.
- Behavioral Health Professional Panel Presenters: Panelists include behavioral health professionals from across the region who have varied educational and career experiences. Types of organizations represented by panel presenters include local health departments, school-based mental health providers, community mental health agencies, Veterans Affairs, and more!
WHAT CAN YOU DO TO SUPPORT OUR WORK?
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- Apply to become a behavioral health mentor or panel presenter
- Host a behavioral health professional panel presentation in your school
- Apply to become a behavioral health fellow
JOIN US
Are you interested in joining this action team? If so, email us at behavioralhealth@northernmichiganchir.org.
