Supporting Trauma Recovery Opportunities & Nurturing Growing Emotional Resilience

Principal Investigator

  • Sheree Toth, Ph.D.

Evaluator

  • Jody Manly, Ph.D.

Project Director

  • Alisa Hathaway, LCSW-R, Ed.D.

Funder

Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration

Children exposed to trauma have extremely high rates of mental health, medical, and academic difficulties, which place a significant burden on families and society, from social welfare to legal systems. Accessibility of evidence-based, trauma-informed treatment is essential for recovery.

Project STRONGER (Supporting Trauma Recovery Opportunities & Nurturing Growing Emotional Resilience) increases availability of evidence-based trauma treatments for children and families exposed to trauma and promotes policies that support trauma-informed care. STRONGER builds upon existing work with children and families in the child welfare system as well as military-affiliated families facing unique stressors, such as deployment or relocation. This five-year project promotes resilience in 400 young children and their families (80 each year) who will be referred from community partners, the Monroe County Department of Human Services, and military resources.

Depending on an individual’s needs, STRONGER provides several trauma treatments to children and their caregivers: Alternatives for Families – A Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, Child-Parent Psychotherapy, Group Attachment-Based Intervention, Interpersonal Psychotherapy for Adolescents, and Trauma-Focused Cognitive Behavioral Therapy.

STRONGER staff members train diverse audiences about the effects of trauma and disseminate best practices for implementing evidence-based interventions locally and nationally. STRONGER also facilitates screening and trauma-informed service delivery for child-serving systems and builds on existing collaborative efforts of a multidisciplinary team of community stakeholders.

STRONGER renews Mt. Hope Family Center’s membership in the prestigious National Child Traumatic Stress Network (NCTSN). The project’s findings will be used to develop educational materials and national protocols for using Child Parent Psychotherapy and other evidence-based trauma treatments and to provide training throughout the country.