Tagged With "Trauma-Informed Judicial Systems"
Blog Post
It took 3 years, 6 versions to develop ACEs screener that works for parents & providers
It’s irrefutable: Widespread research shows that adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) are common. That’s why researchers in a recent study insist: “It behooves pediatric providers to take an active role in preventing and identifying childhood adversity in order to reduce the health consequences of toxic stress.” In other words, if you want your kids to have a good shot at a healthy life, make sure they — and you — are educated about and screened for ACEs and resilience. In a recent study —...
Blog Post
ACEs Science Champions Series: Meet Florida's Johnny Appleseed. She plants seeds of ACEs science!
Dr. Mimi Graham is Florida’s Johnny Appleseed, but instead of planting apple trees, she’s been seeding hundreds of ACEs-science-informed schools, courts, juvenile detention centers, hospitals, childcare centers, home visiting programs, mental health agencies, law enforcement agencies, and drug treatment centers. Graham, who has served as director of the Florida State University Center for Prevention and Early Intervention Policy in Tallahassee since 1993, focuses on early childhood,...
Blog Post
Overview of the Community Resiliency Model, used worldwide to help trauma survivors re-regulate their central nervous system, offered in two, free 90-minute webinars.
Elaine Miller Karas , key creator of the Community Resiliency Model (CRM), will be joined by CRM trainers from Wilmington, NC, Allison Wine , behavioral specialist, and Kelly Purcell , instructional coach and multi-tiered support specialist for this free, two-part training. Register now for two, FREE 90-minute sessions May 7 from 11 a.m. - 12:30 p.m. EST and May 14 from 11 a.m. - 12:30 p.m. EST (The complete overview requires attendance at both sessions. Registration link below registers you...
Blog Post
Personal stories from witnesses, U.S. representatives provided an emotional wallop to House Oversight and Reform Committee hearing on childhood trauma
Room erupts in applause for the grandmother of witness William Kellibrew during July 11 House Oversight and Reform Committee hearing. The power of personal stories from witnesses and committee members fueled the July 11 hearing on childhood trauma in the House Oversight and Reform Committee* throughout the nearly four hours of often emotional and searing testimony and member questions and statements (Click here for 3:47 hour video). The hearing was organized into a two panels—testimony from...
Blog Post
Sheltering in Place: ACEs-Informed Tips for Self-Care During a Pandemic
Millions of lives have been affected in unprecedented ways by the Coronavirus (COVID-19). We are all grappling with uncertainty—our daily routines interrupted, not knowing what is to come. For those of us who have Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs), these times can be particularly distressing. At the Center for Youth Wellness (CYW), we know that childhood trauma can have a significant impact on an individual’s health and well-being – both physiologically and psychologically. Since the...
Blog Post
Systems Are Not People-Shaped
A few weeks ago I was at a big kickoff event for a new county-wide project to address what our communities feel are the biggest concerns we face. It definitely had its moments and I was all eyes and ears ready to absorb new info and be inspired by the power of coming together for a purpose. One of the last things that I heard that morning was to show the promise of next steps – the speaker said that basically in order to do anything meaningful – you, of course, need a building which – good...
Blog Post
The Black Community, COVID-19 & Trauma [sdvoice.com]
By Latanya West, San Diego Voice, May 15, 2020 In January 2019, Governor Gavin Newsom appointed Dr. Nadine Burke Harris as California’s first-ever Surgeon General. An award-winning physician, researcher and advocate, Dr. Burke Harris’ career has been dedicated to serving vulnerable communities and combating the root causes of health disparities. Her work is equally dedicated to changing the way our society responds to one of the most serious, expensive and widespread public health crises of...
Blog Post
The Issue of "Other ACEs".
Using a purist’s definition of ACEs means we only consider the original study's ten questions designed to identify incidents of abuse, neglect, and household dysfunction that might cause the kind of sustained toxic stress that defines adversity and has lifelong mental and physical health implications. However, being a trauma-informed and ACEs-aware member of society doesn't just mean knowing what ACEs are. We need to become a kind of mental detective to understand what else ACEs might be.
Blog Post
Thinking About Racial Disparities in COVID-19 Impacts Through a Science-Informed, Early Childhood Lens [developingchild.harvard.edu]
By Jack P. Shonkoff and David R. Williams, Center on the Developing Child, April 27, 2020 The COVID-19 virus is ruthlessly contagious and, at the same time, highly selective. Its capacity to infect is universal, but the consequences of becoming infected are not. While there are exceptions, children are less likely to show symptoms, older adults and those with pre-existing medical conditions are the most susceptible, and communities of color in the United States are experiencing dramatically...
Blog Post
Tools and how to use them is focus of second webinar on Community Resiliency Model, May 14, 2020
The second of two free Community Resiliency (CRM) webinars with Elaine Miller-Karas , key creator of the CRM, will be held Thursday, May 14, from 11 a.m. - 12:30 p.m. ET, (10 a.m. CT; 9 a.m. MT, and 8 a.m. PT) and will include the practical application of tools of the model. CRM is an ACEs science-based biological model for helping individuals become emotionally regulated during natural disasters and other dysregulating times. Miller-Karas will be joined by CRM trainers from Wilmington, NC:...
Blog Post
Toxic Stress and ACEs
Stress is a strange thing. It’s both a feeling (a sense of being under intense pressure or emotional strain) and a mechanism by which the body’s systems respond to those feelings. We hear opposing statements about stress. Either stress is good for us because it motivates us to succeed, or all the stress in our lives in going to kill us… Which one is true? When it comes to stress, it’s a matter of degree. Yes, a little stress is part of human survival. It focuses us, energizes us, and helps...
Blog Post
Trauma is Messy
I will always remember the day that, as a student teacher, I watched as a student entered my second-grade room covered in blood. After quickly establishing that he was not injured, we learned that the blood was that of his brother who had been shot the night before. No parents were around that night, so this second grader became the sole caregiver of his bleeding brother. My student would never be the same. We didn’t care about grades or test scores. We just knew that this moment would...
Blog Post
Upates, good news, recommendation and link to register for Making Meaningful Change: Addressing ACEs through Public Policy Webinar February 18
The World Health Organization has compiled a recent meta-analysis about how much ACEs cost us Millions of adults across Europe and north America live with a legacy of ACEs. Their findings suggest that a 10% reduction in ACE prevalence could equate to annual savings of $105 billion. Programs to prevent ACEs and moderate their effects are available. Rebalancing expenditure towards ensuring safe and nurturing childhoods would be economically beneficial and relieve pressures on health-care...
Blog Post
Webinar: Cultivating Our Best Selves in Response to COVID-19 | Tuesday, March 17 at Noon PDT
How to use the skills of the Community Resiliency Model (CRM) for self and others to be the calm in the storm as we face the unknown. Free Webinar Tuesday, March 17 at Noon PDT Speakers: Elaine Miller-Karas, LCSW Linda Grabbe, PhD, FNP-BC, PMHNP-BC Zoom Webinar Registration Link: https://zoom.us/j/715837300 Additional ways to join are listed at the bottom of this post. About the webinar leaders: Elaine Miller-Karas is the Executive Director and co-founder of the Trauma Resource Institute and...
Blog Post
Webinar—Florida's Early Childhood Courts: Transforming Child Welfare on June 6 (3:00-4:30 ET)
Please join this June 6 webinar on Florida’s early childhood courts (aka “safe babies courts”) hosted by the National Center on Domestic Violence, Trauma & Mental Health and co-sponsored by the Campaign for Trauma-Informed Policy and Practice and ACEs Connection. Background: Every six minutes in the U.S., an infant, toddler or child under the age of 3 is removed from their homes for alleged abuse and neglect and placed in state custody through the child welfare system (Zero to Three).
Blog Post
ACEs & African Americans Community on ACEs Connection
ACEs Connection envisions a resilient world where ALL people thrive. We are an anti-racist organization committed to the pursuit of social justice. In our work to promote resilience and prevent and mitigate ACEs, we intentionally embrace and uplift people who have historically not had a seat at the table. ACEs Connection celebrates the voices and tells the stories of people who have been barred from decision-making and who have shouldered the burden of systemic and economic oppression as the...
Blog Post
ACEs Connection's Inclusion Tool makes sure nobody's left out
We developed ACEs Connection's Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Tool — called the Inclusion Tool, for short — to ensure that ACEs initiatives across the world focus on being inclusive when forming a steering committee, recruiting leaders, providing education about ACEs science, recruiting members, or providing resources and services within their communities. The more inclusive your ACEs initiative is, the more diverse it will be, giving your initiative a real shot at achieving equity and...
Blog Post
Action needed today by trauma advocates to urge Congress to address mental health and trauma in current COVID-19 legislation
The follow is a message from Dan Press, Legal Advisor to the Campaign for Trauma-Informed Policy and Practice ), about the need to contact Congress regarding a COVID 19 funding bill being considered this weekend. He is urging ACEs science/trauma advocates and leaders to send emails to their U.S. Senators and Representatives immediately to address the mental health and trauma implications of this pandemic. All – I hate to bother you on a Sunday, but we urgently need you to contact Congress to...
Blog Post
Fighting ACEs Amid the Pandemic
When a pandemic hits, and suddenly nothing is the same, it’s a sobering opportunity to take a deep breath and to take stock. At Center for Child Counseling, we specialize in childhood trauma and Fighting ACEs (Adverse Childhood Experiences) and we'll keep doing what we so best...
Blog Post
Foster Care Case Numbers Continue to Climb in NC, as Opioid Crisis Affects Families [northcarolicahealthnews.org]
By Sarah Ovaska-Few, North Carolina Health News, September 24, 2019 North Carolina could use more people like Lisa Link, as the state grapples with record numbers of children entering and staying in the already stretched foster care system. Link, an auto broker and owner of a small used-car lot in Charlotte, opted five years ago to become a foster parent after years of helping with family members’ children. She was single, in her early 40s, and wanted to help children coming out of difficult...
Blog Post
GABOR MATÉ JOINS EP. 3 on May 21 with Darrell Hammond and Filmmaker Michelle Esrick. [crackedupmovie.com]
CRACKED UP THE EVOLVING CONVERSATION TRAUMA AS THE ROOT CAUSE OF ADDICTION With DARRELL HAMMOND DIRECTOR MICHELLE ESRICK and RENOWNED TRAUMA AND ADDICTION EXPERT GABOR MATÉ, M.D. author of In the Realm of Hungry Ghosts: Close Encounters With Addiction MODERATED BY JANE STEVENS, FOUNDER OF ACES CONNECTION Hosted by ACES Connection Thursday May 21st at 2pm PDT / 3p MT / 4p CT / 5pm EDT FREE FOR ALL WHO REGISTER! IF YOU REGISTER, BUT CAN NOT ATTEND, YOU WILL RECEIVE A RECORDING WITHIN ONE WEEK.
Blog Post
Got time for a little brainstorming with ACEsConnection?
On Friday, March 20, 2020, you're invited to join me to talk about how we, as a community, can continue to guide and educate ourselves about to deal with the effects of the spread of Covid-19, and how to continue those efforts with people who don't yet know about ACEs science. And, given this last week, how we can provide more support to stay in the front of our brains instead of feeding our amygdala.
Blog Post
Governor Declares November 1, 2019 as Florida's Trauma Informed Care Day
Thank you Governor DeSantis (and Zack Gibson in the Governor’s Office) for declaring today as Florida’s Trauma Informed Care Day . Many of Florida’s most costly, intractable social problems including our opioid and substance dependency crisis, our sky-rocketing public health costs, tragic school failures, and the multigenerational cycle of families into our criminal justice and child welfare systems, can be decreased by addressing early trauma. Initiatives are taking shape at both the state...
Blog Post
How do these pediatricians do ACEs screening? Early adopters tell all.
Last week, three pediatricians — with a combined experience of 15 years integrating ACEs science into their practices — reflected on the urgency they felt several years ago that prompted them to begin screening patients for childhood adversity and resilience when there was practically no guidance at all. Along their journey , they accumulated a list of lessons learned for other pediatricians and family clinics to use. The three pediatricians participated in the ACEs Connection webinar,...
Blog Post
Support our efforts to secure a CDC ACEs grant to advance FL as a trauma-informed state!
Dear Trauma Friends & Colleagues: We are applying for CDC ACES grant to further our efforts toward a trauma informed state. It’s a collaborative effort across state agencies to improve ACES data collection and utilizes to target prevention strategies. Details in the attached overview. It’s a long shot with only 4 awards but our statewide collaborative efforts are a big strength and it might help push us to the top if we had many letters of support. Attached is a draft letter that you...
Blog Post
A Better Normal Tuesday, June 30th at Noon PDT: Reinterpreting American Identity, a Community Discussion
"I think that all of us, regardless of our racial or ethnic background, feel relieved that we no longer have to deal with the racism and the sexism associated with the system of slavery. But we treat the history of enslavement like we treat the genocidal colonization of indigenous people in North America, as if it was not that important, or worse, as if it never happened." —Angela Davis, "The Meaning of Freedom" Please join us for the ongoing community discussion of A Better Normal, our...
Blog Post
Community Resilience Series Part 1: Parenting in an Age of Uncertainty [Peace & Justice Institute]
Dr. Ken Ginsburg was overwhelmingly well-received as the keynote speaker at the recent Creating a Resilient Community: From Trauma to Healing Conference back in April of this year. The Peace and Justice Institute (PJI) at Valencia College is excited to share that we are bringing him back to deliver 3 additional virtual workshops in a Community Resilience Series. The first workshop in this FREE series will be specifically for parents: Parenting in an Age of Uncertainty , July 7th from 5:30 -...
Blog Post
Help Navigating the Road to Community Resiliency
The first time I ever heard the words trauma-informed care and the Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACEs) study was in the summer of 2014. At the time, I was working for the local Police Department as the Director of a grant-funded Crime Reduction Project aimed at reducing drug-related and violent crime. Of the many program goals, one was to develop a rehabilitative corrections program for felony offenders with addictions in order to reduce recidivism. Though I’ve lived in this region for...
Blog Post
Greater Richmond Trauma Informed Community Network, first to join ACEs Cooperative of Communities, shows what it means to ROCK!
In 2012, Greater Richmond SCAN and five other community partners hatched a one-year plan to educate the Richmond, Virginia, community about ACEs science and to embed trauma-informed practices. Eight years later, the original group has evolved into the Greater Richmond Trauma-Informed Community Network (GRTICN) with 495 people and 170 organizations. And they're just scratching the surface.
Blog Post
Trauma-informed policing: Learn how three highly experienced community leaders strengthen ties between police and community
ACEs initiative participants in communities where there is tension between the community and law enforcement will want to join Becky Haas in a compelling conversation on law enforcement, ACEs science, COVID-19 and the Black Lives Matter movement and protests. Haas is a nationally recognized adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) science initiative builder and trainer. She and colleagues Renee Wilson-Simmons, the head of the ACE Awareness Foundation of Memphis, Tennessee, and Maggi Duncan,...
Blog Post
Baby courts: A proven approach to stop the multigenerational transmission of ACES in child welfare; new efforts to establish courts nationwide
The organization Zero To Three estimates that in the U.S., a child is taken into the child welfare system every six seconds. “Many of society’s most intractable problems can be traced back to childhood adversity. Being in the child welfare system increases the likelihood of more adversity and criminality. Baby court is a proven approach to healing the trauma of both child and parent, and breaking the cycle of maltreatment,” says Mimi Graham, Ed.D ., director of the Florida State University...
Blog Post
Does VP Candidate Kamala Harris know about ACEs? You bet!
Nadine Burke Harris, California’s Surgeon General, has a lot in common with the vice presidential candidate Kamala Harris—Jamaican heritage, surname, home state—and a commitment to addressing ACEs and toxic stress. As reported in the New Yorker article by Paul Tough, “The Poverty Clinic,” Dr. Harris told Kamala Harris, then San Francisco district attorney, about ACEs in 2008 and in response, she offered to help. District Attorney Harris then introduced her to professor of child and...
Blog Post
FSU launches new level of professional certification on trauma and resilience (Florida State University News)
By Anna Printess, August 31, 2020, Florida State University News. Florida State University’s College of Social Work recently launched a new level in its successful Professional Certification in Trauma and Resilience online series. The curriculum series, developed by the Clearinghouse on Trauma and Resilience within the college’s Institute for Family Violence Studies in conjunction with the FSU Center for Academic and Professional Development , enables professionals to develop the knowledge...
Blog Post
New ACEs initiatives learn about strategic plan development from from New Hanover (NC) Resiliency Task Force executive director Mebane Boyd
The desire to see other ACEs initiatives grow and flourish was evident at a recent meeting of the Resilient Columbus County (North Carolina) ACEs initiative when Mebane Boyd, executive director of the New Hanover Resiliency Task Force (also in North Carolina), shared with the Columbus County and neighboring Pender County groups how New Hanover created and works on its strategic plan. In the spirit of sharing, Boyd agreed to let ACEs Connection post the strategic plan and the video of the...
Blog Post
The Intersection of Systematic Racism, the Pandemic, and SDoMH: Reality Mandates Change
Systematic racism is at the core of mental health disparities and social determinants of mental health (SDoMH).Upstream factors obstruct patient access to needed and appropriate assessment, timely intervention, with treatment for these populations often reflecting poorer quality, and ending prior to completion of treatment. COVID-19 and the recent pandemic have only amplified meso and micro-level gaps in care. considered, provided, and reimbursed.
Blog Post
"A Better Normal" Community Discussion: Suicide Awareness and Community Cafes
Join us on Friday November 6, 2020 from noon to 1:00 PST as we come together and join Satya Chandragiri MD, Bonnie O’Hern RN, Denise Proudfoot RN, & Michael Polacek RN for a discussion around the tender issue of suicide. Together we will discuss ways people and providers can support each other and encourage communities to take action to support one another around suicide prevention, crisis intervention, and the layers of culture and structural barriers to care. A special emphasis will be...
Blog Post
In medical schools, students seek robust and mandatory anti-racist training [washingtonpost.com]
By Elizabeth Lawrence, The Washington Post, November 8, 2020 Betial Asmerom, a fourth-year medical student at the University of California at San Diego, didn’t have the slightest interest in becoming a doctor when she was growing up. As an adolescent, she helped her parents — immigrants from Eritrea who spoke little English — navigate the health-care system in Oakland, Calif. She saw physicians who were disrespectful to her family and uncaring about treatment for her mother’s cirrhosis,...
Blog Post
The Pandemic Is Raging. Here's How to Support Your Grieving Students [edweek.org]
By Brittany R. Collins, Education Week, November 12, 2020 Over the past few decades, trauma-informed teaching has gained ground in the United States, yet rarely is grief included in the conversation. In the midst of a global pandemic, with teachers and students confronting loss in and outside the classroom in new and myriad ways, it is more critical than ever to apply a grief-sensitive lens to our conversations about curricula and trauma in the school system. We are not the people we were a...
Blog Post
Opportunity to sign on to “A Trauma-Informed Agenda for the First 100 Days of the Biden-Harris Administration”—Deadline Dec. 8th
The Campaign for Trauma-Informed Policy and Practice ( CTIPP ) is inviting individuals and organizations to express their support for a set of executive actions for the Biden-Harris Administration to take “to address trauma and build resilience throughout the country.” Most of these actions could be taken early in the Administration and would not require congressional action with the exception of some recommendations that could be included in a new stimulus package. The recommendations are...
Blog Post
Committed: How a 6-Year-Old Revealed Florida's Dysfunctional System of Baker Acting Kids [centerforhealthjournalism.org]
By JacqueLynn Hatter, Center for Health Journalism, December 13, 2020 The number of children who are taken for involuntary psychiatric evaluations in Florida increases every year. This is the first story in a five-part series about how the state's Baker Act affects children. Each day in Florida, about 100 kids are involuntarily committed for psychiatric exams under the state's Baker Act. The law was not designed for children, yet over the past few years, the number of minors taken for mental...
Blog Post
ACEs Connection/CTIPP Southeastern Leaders’ call: State updates, funding information, and “mind-blowing” information about helping people out of poverty
Southeastern ACEs Connection and national CTIPP leaders on the quarterly leader call welcomed guest speaker Rebecca Lewis-Pankratz (top left) for their quarterly call. Also among those present were (top row l-r) Carey Sipp, Jesse Kohler, Jesse Hardin, (second row, l-r) Patti Tiberi, Mebane Boyd, Jen Drake-Croft, Dan Press, (third row, l-r) Mimi Graham, Christopher Freeze, Margaret Stagmeier, (fourth row, l-r) Emily Marsh, Liz Peterson, Alyssa Koziarski and Janet Pozmantier. Also present was...
Blog Post
A Better Normal Friday, March 26, 2021: PACEs and HOPE with Dr. Christina Bethell
Please join us for our next installment of A Better Normal, our live webinar series in which we imagine and create our society as trauma-informed! You may have seen we changed our name recently from ACEs Connection to PACEs Connection. Please join us to learn all about the groundbreaking research of Positive Childhood Experiences and how this is going to transform the work we are all doing. >>Click here to register<< PACEs and HOPE Live Event Friday, March 26, 2021 Noon PT / 1pm...
Blog Post
Last chance to apply for a scholarship for the Creating a Resilient Community Conference!
Apply for a Scholarship In this new video PJI Director, Rachel Allen shares some exciting information regarding what you can expect at the upcoming Conference! Register for the Conference Conference Overview: The Peace and Justice Institute at Valencia College, the Early Learning Coalition of Orange County, the Creating a Resilient Community Network and Title Sponsor, Orlando Health, are excited to invite you to register for the Third Annual Creating a Resilient Community (CRC): From Trauma...
Blog Post
Register now! Best-Selling Author, Best Trauma-Informed Practices -- Including Handle With Care, Safe Baby Courts -- Highlight Packed Third Annual "Creating A Resilient Community" Conference!
“The agenda for the third annual “Creating a Resilient Community Conference (Virtual Event)” reads like an all-star cast of trauma-informed experts coming together to share the best of what they know, and offers myriad opportunities for communities at all stages of becoming trauma-informed to learn about best practices, in many instances, by people who created landmark trauma-informed programs,” said Rachel C. Allen, PJI Director. The two-day conference, which starts April 20th, features...
Blog Post
Best Practices, Internationally Respected Experts Featured at ACEs Central Florida Conference. Registration Closes Monday!
Donna Jackson Nakazawa ( photo by Marshall Clarke ), award winning science journalist and author of Angel and the Assassin , will join Dr. Mimi Graham , director of Florida State University's Center for Prevention and Early Intervention Policy , Andrea Darr , creator of Handle With Care, Captain Lovetta Quinn-Henry , from the Orlando Police Department and many more featured at the conference. Help your community move the needle toward a trauma-informed, resilient community by learning from...
Blog Post
PACEs Connection presents the "Historical Trauma in America" series
PACEs Connection's Race & Equity Workgroup will be examining historical trauma in the United States of America and its impact on American society in a series of virtual discussions. This series will highlight each unique region within the United States and outline how unresolved historical trauma has impacted every aspect of American life and directly shapes the socio-political landscape of today as well as the overall well-being of Americans. Discussions will make connections between...
Blog Post
2011-2021—A decade of steady growth in ACEs and TI laws and resolutions in the states
In 2019 and 2020, dozens of states enacted nearly 60 laws and resolutions that reference adverse childhood experiences or trauma. In this post, there's an interactive map that shows them all.
Blog Post
The Wisdom of Trauma - Encore Event - This Weekend until Midnight PST Sunday
If you missed the recent world premiere of The Wisdom of Trauma Movie with Dr. Gabor Maté, this weekend you can watch the encore of the movie plus get full access to the Talks on Trauma series including my talk with Dr. Gabor Maté and Nneka Jones Tapia on "A Vision for Compassionate Prison." The link is here (all donations will go to Compassion Prison Project by using this link!): https://fritzihorstman--sand.thrivecart.com/supporter/6080622415b14/ Opening Kick Off Introduction with Gabor...
Blog Post
The best way to start any meeting. Ever.
Following a brief mindfulness check-in, PACEs Connection staff meetings begin with the review of our Vision, Mission, and Values statements, as well as our Equity and Inclusion Statement. At a recent meeting, top row, L-R, Ingrid Cockhren, Carey Sipp, Donielle Prince, Jane Stevens. Middle row, L-R, John Flores, Porter Jennings-McGarity, Jenna Quinn, Gail Kennedy. Bottom row, L-R, Rafael Maravilla, Natalie Audage, Alison Cebulla, Samantha Sangenito. A couple of times last week I felt my body...
Blog Post
Florida receives federal grant to bring “Handle with Care” supports to any Florida community
The state of Florida received a grant from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) to implement Handle with Care in any Florida community that wants it. This grant includes training, resources, and technical support for both school districts and police departments as the program carries out. Initial funding to implement the program is vital because, once off the ground, upkeep for the program is inexpensive. The SAMHSA grant will only last for four more years,...