Annual Report 2008 - Los Angeles Child Guidance Clinic

Where a better future is a ‘work-in-progress’At first, she was reluctant to admit toany mental health issues because of whatshe calls a “stigma” in her community.Now, she freely says that such problemsrun in her family and is proud of herselffor accepting help.The Clinic’s CalWORKs programoffers at least four English-speakinggroups and four Spanish-speakinggroups weekly, in addition to individualizedcase management and counselingservices. Inside the groups, participantscoping skills. She received housing, casemanagement, and job readiness services.She still comes to the Clinic once a weekfor Trauma Group and has individualcounseling on an as-needed basis.On her way to her bachelor’s degree,something happened that once mighthave sent her into a tailspin: Isabelbecame pregnant. Her second child, aboy, is due later this year. Isabel is makingplans to job hunt full force after thatevent. In the meantime, she’s taking“Life isn’t just what’s here in front of me at any moment. It’s more.”This summer, Isabel, 26, earned herBachelor of Science in Criminal JusticeAdministration from the University ofPhoenix — a remarkable achievementfor a young woman who spent the pastsix years on welfare and a lifetime confrontingfeelings of anger and despair.As a single mom with an 11-yearolddaughter, Isabel once thought shecouldn’t shape her own future. Today,she happily calls herself “a work-in-progress.”Her goal: to become a Parole Officerand eventually inspire other younggirls to do more with their futures.Isabel is a participant in the LosAngeles Child Guidance Clinic’sCalWORKs program, which providesmental health services to adult participantsof the California Work Opportunityand Responsibility to Kids Welfareto-Workprogram. The primary focus:removing the barriers that mental healthissues pose to employment.“The sense of hopelessness is pervasiveamong the people we help at the Clinic,”says Katie Vernoy, M.S., L.M.F.T.,CalWORKs Coordinator. “Often, mybiggest job is instilling hope and teachingself-care, so that each person can seeoptions he or she couldn’t see before.”Before Isabel started coming to theClinic in 2006, she often responded tostress by shutting down, typically evenforgetting to eat, and reacting beforethinking. “I was very reactive,” shelaughs.help each other problem solve.Like many consumers who join theCalWORKs program, Isabel startedwith an intensive round of services,coming three times a week for a parentinggroup, case management, andone-on-one counseling, among otherservices. Gradually, she learned to identifythe triggers that might send her intodepression – along with all-importantchild development classes.She has learned she can make a differencein her life just by changing herthinking. “I can’t necessarily changewhat is happening. But coming tomental health services helps me thinkin a new way. I know now that life isn’tjust what’s here in front of me at anymoment. It’s more.”It is important that our youth realize the significant challenges they face arenot barriers to success in the workforce and that gaining employmentis essential to self-sufficiency. The youth we help are the nextgeneration of community partners in South Los Angeles. As a team, we arededicated to instilling hope and optimism in our young consumers in realizing theirown dreams and making a positive contribution to the fabric of the community.— Susie Davis, Ph.D., Life Learning Program Director &Leticia Vargas, Senior Vocational Rehabilitation Counselor,Department of RehabilitationChanging Lives, Changing Worlds | 7