Community Advocates is proud to announce that Jan Buchler was recognized with the Association of Child and Youth Care Practitioners (ACYCP) Lifetime Achievement Award to celebrate Jan's extraordinary commitment over decades to support children and families while leading organizations including The Parenting Network, Community Advocates, and the Nonprofit Center in Milwaukee.

The ACYCP Lifetime Achievement Award was designed to call special attention to Child and Youth Care leaders who have been exceptional among their peers and have demonstrated a lifelong commitment to the field of Child and Youth Care. It’s described as “a salute and standing ovation for individuals who have always been there for the Child and Youth Care profession.”

That description describes Jan perfectly. Earlier this year, Jan stepped down from her position as Contract Monitor at Community Advocates Public Policy Institute, where she mentored youth- and family-focused organizations and staff who participate in the Milwaukee Brighter Futures and Stay Strong Milwaukee initiatives.

Prior to joining the PPI team at Community Advocates, Jan served for 15 years as the Executive Director of The Parenting Network, whose mission is to strengthen parenting and to prevent child abuse, and as Director of Family Services at Meta House, an outpatient and residential facility serving women in recovery from substance abuse. Jan also served as Director of Early Childhood and Family Services at the Jewish Community Center in Milwaukee and the Leo Yassenhoff JCC in Columbus, Ohio, for over 20 years. 

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) prioritize adverse childhood experiences, overdose, and suicide, areas that are strongly linked to mental health. Recently, U.S Surgeon General Dr. Vivek Murthy has called for immediate action to address the nation's youth mental health crisis. The surgeon general's advisory on protecting youth mental health includes recommendations such as recognizing that mental health is an essential part of overall health and empowering youth and their families. With the pandemic changing our lives and affecting our youth, it is even more important for the nation to prioritize and educate families and communities. To learn more about the youth's mental health crisis, click here.

Revitalize Milwaukee and Coalition On Lead Emergency (COLE) are offering lead training opportunities. Become certified in less than two weeks in lead abatement and as a lead abatement supervisor. The training is free and includes a $15/hour training stipend while in class. Trainings will be held in person at 840 N. Old World 3rd Street, #400, Milwaukee. To sign up, email Allison at allison@rtmilwaukee.org

The Great Lakes PTTC is offering a training introduction to Substance Misuse Prevention. It is a two-hour interactive training that will introduce the field of substance misuse prevention, basic definitions used in the prevention field, key models and more! This training is perfect for those new to the field with less than 2 years of experience. The training will be held via Zoom on Tuesday, December 14, at 9 a.m. To register, click here.

The Southeast PTTC is hosting a webinar that will discuss the issues of faith and spirituality as protective factors and how they can be mobilized to reduce substance misuse. There will also be a discussion on creating effective and innovative strategies for engaging faith leaders in prevention efforts. The webinar will be held on Wednesday, December 15, from 11 a.m. -12:30 p.m. To register, click here.

Mental Health First Aid-Adult teaches you how to identify, understand and respond to signs of mental illness and substance use disorders in adults. This training will give you the skills you need to reach out and provide initial support to someone who may be developing a mental health or substance use problem and help connect them to the appropriate care. Community Advocates is offering a virtual MHFA-Adult session on Friday, December 17 from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. Click here for details and to register.

Celebrate the season! Join Owen's Place and SEEd at their Create and Sip Holiday Affair. There will be jewelry making, painting and games as you sip hot cocoa. The event will be held on Thursday, December 16, from 3 to 5 p.m. at Owen's Place, 4610 W. Fond Du Lac Ave. No registration is required.

The Wisconsin Department of Health Services is hosting a training on The Importance of Stigma in the Prevention, Diagnosis and Management of Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders. In this training, you will be able to describe the range of effects of prenatal alcohol exposure, identify the stigma surrounding alcohol use during pregnancy and more. The training will be held via Zoom on Thursday, December 16, from 11 a.m. to 12 noon. To join the webinar, go online at https://dhswi.zoomgov.com/j/1606358142 or phone 669-254-5252, enter the Webinar ID: 160 635 8142#, and press # again to join. (There is no participant ID.)

There is a survey opportunity for Asian American and Pacific Islander youth and young adults (10-29) to help collect data on the mental health and well-being of Asian American adolescents and youth during the COVID-19 pandemic. The Young Asian American Health Survey (YAAHS) has also created a communications toolkit to help spread the word about this survey. To visit their website, click here and to take the survey, click here.

The Maternal Mortality Review Team is looking to recruit new team members. The MMRT is a multi-disciplinary group of professionals that reviews case-level information about deaths of Wisconsin residents that occur during pregnancy or within one year of the end of pregnancy. The purpose of MMRT is to make recommendations on changes in the systems and practices to prevent future deaths. To apply, send a statement of interest and resume/CV to the Maternal Mortality Review Team by January 31, 2022.

Join in and listen to The Region V Public Health Training Center's podcast, "Ideas for Practice." This podcast aims to share insights that may spark ideas among those working in the public health field. The episodes will introduce new frameworks and encourage public health professionals to implement new strategies in their practice. To listen to episodes, click here.