Leadership

• Barbara Ferman, Ph.D. and Ieshia Nelson, M.A., Co-Principal Investigators
• Ethan Rodriguez, Consultant

Summary

This project trains young adults with serious mental health conditions from disadvantaged backgrounds to take action on social, economic, and political issues. Dr. Barbara Ferman, who has promoted civic engagement among disadvantaged young adults for over 25 years, leads the project. Civic engagement promotes personal and community well-being, but disadvantaged young adults face learning barriers.

Activities

1. Dr. Ferman and Ms. Nelson will partner with Young Adults to develop a civic engagement program specific to Young Adults with SMHC from disadvantaged backgrounds.
2. They will create ten 90-minute training sessions on topics such as disability justice, race-related power issues, the infrastructure of local systems, media as a social change tool, community outreach, voting, and volunteering.
3. The program will be implemented with up to 15 Young Adults from Philadelphia-based programs, refined, and prepared for wider dissemination.
4. The train-the-trainer package will be shared with Debbie Nicolellis to offer these trainings to Young Adult Access Centers in MA.