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It has been a busy season for The Alaska Mental Health Trust Authority and the Trust Land Office. In addition to reaching internal milestones such as the board's approval of our FY27 budget, we've also been productively engaging with beneficiaries and stakeholders at fall industry and trade gatherings to exchange ideas and lessons learned and to promote opportunities for partnership.
In addition, in the past quarter the board of trustees approved $4.7M in grant funding to support 34 beneficiary supporting projects and initiatives across the state that expand access to behavioral health and prevention services for Trust beneficiaries, support beneficiary housing, strengthen opportunities for community engagement, and more. These grant investments reflect our ongoing commitment to work with nonprofits, service providers, Tribal entities, and state and local government agencies to improve the lives and circumstances of Trust beneficiaries. You can read more about each grant awarded last quarter in our latest Quarterly Grant Summary, linked below.
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New: Cost of Care Amount (COCA) Guides for Beneficiaries and Providers
The Trust funded a project in partnership with the Alaska Assoc. on Developmental Disabilities (AADD), and developed with support from the Alaska Dept. of Health, to create easy to read materials about cost of care for providers and clients. Cost of care is essentially the co-pay that Medicaid-recipient users of the long-term services and supports system have to pay. It is a topic that is complicated to explain and these guides break down the information in simpler terms for both clients and providers.
The guides, linked below, are available on the Trust webpage:
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Trust Grant Highlight:
Maniilaq's EmPATH Unit in Kotzebue
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As a part of the Trust's ongoing effort to improve behavioral health crisis response, it has been working with partners to help stand up new Crisis stabilization services in our communities. Aligning with this work, the board of trustees recently approved a $900,000 Trust grant to Maniilaq Association for an Emergency Psychiatric Assessment, Treatment and Healing (EmPATH) unit at their health center in Kotzebue.
Maniilaq Association is the Tribal Health organization serving the Northwest Arctic Borough. This specialized unit in Kotzebue will address the significant gap in behavioral health crisis care in the region by providing a dedicated, calming environment specifically designed for behavioral health crisis stabilization. Currently, individuals experiencing behavioral health crises often receive insufficient treatment in emergency departments or are transported out of the region for stabilization. The EmPATH Unit will provide a more appropriate care setting within the community, reducing reliance on costly transportation, improving patient outcomes, and creating a model that could potentially be replicated in other remote rural Alaskan service areas.
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How Do Trust Lands Support
Trust Beneficiaries?
Residing within the Department of Natural Resources, the Trust Land Office (TLO) is contracted exclusively by the Alaska Mental Health Trust Authority to manage its approximately one million acres of land and other non-cash assets to generate revenue. The TLO has a responsibility, by law, to maximize revenue generation from Trust land assets and does so by selling and developing its land and resources. All decisions pertaining to the use of Trust lands must be made in the best interest of the Trust and its beneficiaries, and revenues generated from Trust lands support grants and activities that support Trust beneficiaries statewide. Revenue-generating uses of Trust land include land use authorizations and sales; commercial real estate; timber sales; mineral exploration and production; coal, oil, and gas exploration and development; sand, gravel, and rock sales; mitigation marketing, and other general land uses.
Visit our webpage to learn more about how Trust lands support Trust beneficiaries.
| | | | November is Alzheimer's Disease Awareness Month | |
Next month we'll be honoring Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias (ADRD) Awareness, acknowledging the thousands of Alaskans living with ADRD, and their families and caregivers. For Trust beneficiaries living with ADRD, early detection and timely connection to care can support safety, independence, and quality of life.
ADRD often develop gradually. Recognizing early signs can help Alaskans access information, services, and support sooner.
Common early signs may include:
• Recent memory loss
• Confusion of time and place
• Difficulty completing familiar tasks
• New problems with words (speaking or writing)
• Changes in mood, personality, or judgment
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Meet Brendan, Trust Partner and Beneficiary
“I’m really proud of my journey.” That’s what Brendan had to say as he considered his experiences with substance abuse and overcoming addiction. It was a long process, but thanks in part to the team at True North Recovery – a Trust partner and grantee that provides drug and alcohol treatment in Wasilla – Brendan overcame his addiction and has been in recovery ever since. Brendan now works at True North, as he understands the importance of the services they provide, sharing that they “believed in me until I could believe in myself.”
Thank you, Brendan, for the important work that you do, and for sharing your story as a part of our "See Beyond the Stigma" campaign to combat the stigma faced by Trust beneficiaries.
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Fall Land Sale Auction Closes Soon
Bids are due by 4:30PM on November 3
While the 2025 Fall Land Sale Auction officially ends next Monday, there's still time to submit your bid for one of the Trust parcels on offer in this year. Visit the webpage linked below to learn more about the parcels up for grabs and how to place a bid. All revenue generated by the Trust Land Office from the sale will support our organization's work on behalf of beneficiaries across Alaska.
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988: A Valued Resource in Alaska
Since its launch in July 2022, 988, the nation-wide three-digit Suicide and Crisis Call/Text line has answered more than 11 million calls and 3 million texts. In Alaska, Careline Crisis Services, our Crisis Lifeline member center, has seen steady growth in contacts since 988's launch three years ago. Careline staff now respond to more than 3,700 contacts a month; 98% of the time, those crisis calls can be resolved over the phone through trained and caring staff. A 24/7/365 crisis call line is an essential part of behavioral health crisis response, and we're grateful to Careline and the many other partners who are helping improve and strengthen Alaska's crisis system of care. (Chart data is from Careline Crisis Services).
| | | | The next deadline for Trust partnership grant applications is November 15, 2025! | | |
Get the Latest with our Crisis Now Initiative
Each quarter, we release a newsletter focused on work underway in communities across the state to enhance our system responding to behavioral health emergencies. Our quarterly Crisis Now Implementation Update includes community news, resources, up-to-date data, and much more. Find our most recent October 2025 issue and archived newsletters, along with much more online.
| Upcoming Trust Meetings & Public Comment Opportunities | |
The next regular meeting of our board of trustees will be on November 18-19 in Anchorage. All regular board meetings include an opportunity for public comments, which can be provided in person, virtually, or in writing. We'd love to hear from you.
Visit our website for more information about upcoming trustee meetings.
To stay up-to-date on issues important to Trust beneficiaries and those who serve them, you can also tune in to the meetings of our statutory partner boards, click on the links below for more information:
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Looking for Grant Funding?
Make Sure You're Reviewing Our Bi-Monthly Grant Opportunity Report
In addition to serving as a grant-maker ourselves, the Trust also supports beneficiary-serving agencies in pursuing other, non-Trust grant funding.
As a part of this work, we regularly share a curated list of federal, state, and foundation grant funding opportunities specifically relevant to organizations that serve and support Trust beneficiaries through our bi-weekly Opportunity Report.
If your organization is looking for funding, this report is a valuable resource designed to help connect you with opportunities that fit with your mission.
To learn more about how the Trust can support your grant proposal development, visit our grant proposal development resources webpage.
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