Mercer County CIACC Community Advocacy Training

It is with great pleasure that we at the Division of Mental Health announce a new community advocacy training for parents and families who have an interest in the topic of personal empowerment for themselves and for their children.

This is an opportunity to learn new advocacy skills and techniques and/or to refine and practice existing skills. The training described below will focus on advocacy and community engagement skills, empowering participants to become informed, involved, and engaged as parent leaders in the Children’s System of Care.

Community advocate Kimme Carlos will offer three advocacy training sessions to assist and support parents and caregivers to engage as leaders to:

Advise the Mercer County Mental Health Board and the NJ Department of Children and Families in planning for mental health and other services for youth
Identify and address barriers to effective service delivery to children
Make appropriate recommendations on programs and policies that impact children and families
Kimme is a dynamic trainer committed to effecting social change by providing mental and emotional wellness and equity and justice training. She is providing this important training to recruit, train, and support interested parents to join and engage as leaders in the Mercer County Children’s Interagency Coordinating Council (CIACC). The goal of the CIACC is to oversee behavioral health services available to children and families to ensure that a comprehensive system of needed services is available countywide.

If you need more information about our community advocacy training titled “EMPOWERING CIACC YOUTH AND FAMILY CHANGEMAKERS” please see the attachments.
Please contact Michele Madiou, Mercer County Mental Health Administrator or Janka Maya, Children’s Interagency Coordinating Council Coordinator with any questions.
The training will consist of the following:
 A 30-minute introduction to CIACC and the importance of parents and youth becoming
involved as leaders
 A 60-minute advocacy and community engagement session, empowering participants to
become informed, involved and engaged as community members on CIACC
 A 30-minute Q&A session for those seeking more in-depth information.
mmadiou@mercercounty.org or jmaya@mercercounty.org