Archive for the ‘News’ Category
Parents in Partnership
Parents in Partnership, for our alumni community, is chaired by Jerry and Peg Sturman as a parent-run and Wellspring staff supported program for parent assistance and education. Its purpose is to help families deal with mental health issues through mutual support and shared resources. It is also a way for parents who care about children and families to join with Wellspring in its mission. Parents in Partnership is not a clinical group, but rather an association for mutual aid. It is in the process of establishing a website for communication and exchange, and will develop a schedule of program offerings – discussion groups, presentations and relevant publications. Its goal is to create a community of parents with common experiences who can support each other, offer help to families considering Wellspring for their child, share experience with other families in transition, and be of help to Wellspring directly in pursuit of its mission.
If you are interested in registering or learning more about these new programs please contact Christina Reddington in our Community Relations Office at christina.reddington@wellspring.org or 203-266-8027.
Wellspring Announces New CEO
Wellspring is pleased to announce the appointment of Dan Murray, Psy.D., as Wellspring’s new Chief Executive Officer (CEO). An ideal in-house candidate for the job, Dr. Murray is a 27 year veteran of the mental health industry, joining Wellspring in 1991 and serving as Wellspring’s Chief of Professional Services since 2005. He replaces Harvey Newman, MSW, who has retired.
Over the years Dr. Murray has spearheaded clinical and educational projects at Wellspring and the Arch Bridge School and has played a key role in executive management and strategic planning. His intrinsic understanding of Wellspring’s relational treatment model, services and educational programming has made for a seamless transition supported by the entire Wellspring team.
“I look forward to continuing to develop Wellspring and the Arch Bridge School as a leader in Residential, School and Outpatient Services in Connecticut,” shared Dr. Murray in a recent interview.
Dr. Murray holds master’s degrees in Organizational & Industrial Psychology, Clinical Practice and a doctorate in Clinical Psychology. His previous roles at Wellspring included creating the residential children’s services and directing the clinical and counseling dimensions of the Arch Bridge School. Prior to joining Wellspring, Dr. Murray worked and trained at a number of hospitals and agencies including the Connecticut Valley Hospital, Hamden Mental Health Services, Griffin Hospital Outpatient Clinic and Elmcrest Psychiatric Institute.
Wellspring co-founder Richard Beauvais said: “Dan has been with Wellspring for the past twenty years and as Chief of Professional Services was responsible for the clinical excellence of the organization, a job at which he excelled. We are confident that in the role of Chief Executive Officer Dan will continue to strive for excellence and shepherd Wellspring through to the next stage of its growth.”
As the new CEO, Dr. Murray will oversee the clinical, educational and administrative programs and departments at Wellspring and the Arch Bridge School. Much of his energy will be focused on assuring the continued quality of the organization’s not-for-profit offerings, while continuing to develop community, state and regional relationships to provide Wellspring’s unique services and trainings.
While officially departing his role as Chief Executive Officer, Harvey Newman will stay on as a Senior Consultant with Wellspring through the spring, focusing on special projects before he moves toward a well-deserved retirement.
Wellspring Offers New Groups for Alum Families
We are proud to announce two post-discharge opportunities for families of former residents and students of Wellspring. Beginning in September we will offer Parent Support and Multi-Family Groups which will meet in Middlebury, CT and in Rye, NY. Parents in Partnership, our mutual assistance alumni organization, will also become operational again in the fall.
The Parent Support Group (PSG) and Multi-Family Group (MFG) are clinical in orientation and a fee will be set for both. Both groups will provide ongoing clinical support for families who completed treatment or school at Wellspring. They will offer a continuation of the kind of clinical support familiar to families from the Adolescent and the Arch Bridge School Programs. For families whose children were in either the Children’s or Adult residential programs at Wellspring, these groups provide an opportunity to process with other parents common issues and concerns facing families, particularly around discharge and transition. The Middlebury groups will be led by Ann Watson, who has run the PSG and MFG in the Adolescent Program for many years and in Rye by Melodee Morrison, LCSW, a Wellspring Board Member and mother of a former resident. Ann Watson will also assist initially with the NY groups to help build a bridge to this new location and format.
If you are interested in registering or learning more about these new programs please contact Christina Reddington in our Community Relations Office at christina.reddington@wellspring.org or 203-266-8027.
To learn more about the re-launch of Parents in Partnership please click here.
American Residential Treatment Association
Wellspring is a founding members of ARTA, the American Residential Treatment Association. This group is comprised of 30 member facilities that offer residential care to adults with serious mental challenges, including schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, depression, personality disorders, and disorders combined with substance abuse.
You can learn more about ARTA and other member organizations by visiting their website at: www.artausa.org
Members:
Academy Street Community Residence
Appleton Continuing Care Program at McLean
CooperRiis, Healing Farm Community
Gateway Homes of Greater Richmond
The Greystone Program; Friends Hospital
Hopewell, A Therapeutic Farm Community
Institute of Living/Buckingham House: formerly Institute Health Care, Inc.
Parents’ Foundation for Transitional Living, Inc.
SLSHealth: formerly Supervised Lifestyles
Angelus House, The Wellspring Foundation, Inc.
From a former resident of Beauvais House
When I was at Wellspring, I had many hurdles to overcome.
I thought my life was over, but in fact it was just beginning.
I was given the tools I need in order to be healthy and free.
Thanks to Wellspring, when the world gave up on me.
I realized I didn’t HAVE to give up on me.
I graduated from wellspring with a High school diploma and that day was the best day of my life.
I will forever love Wellspring for Loving me.
A young woman’s testimonial about her experience in our adolescent girls program.
Baby Chicks are Hatching here at Wellspring!
It’s been an exciting day on campus for our Land and Animal Program as the first baby chicks began to hatch over in the Chapel Barn.
Here’s a short video announcing The Hatch of our first chick of 2011!
Transition Year: Preparing for College
The Jed Foundation has launched a new website: TransitionYear.org. This site is a portal for parents and students who are looking for assistance making the transition to college.
Whether you need help picking a school that is the best fit, are looking for tips on managing stress once on campus, or want guidance in making a smooth transition for a student dealing with an issue like depression, transitionyear.org has the tools and information you need. The Transition Year is an online resource center to help parents and students focus on emotional health before, during and after the college transition. (taken from the transition year website)
The site’s launch comes at the perfect time – as families begin to create checklists in preparation for a student’s first year at college. I spent some time exploring the separate (parent and student) sides of the site and found resources that outlined important topics like:
- How to transfer therapeutic services from home to school
- Exploring on and off-campus mental health services
- Ways to keep stress in check
- The push and pull of college independence
Do you have any suggestions on ways a family can work together to make the transition to college easier? If so, we’d love to hear from you – please leave a comment below.
Wellspring is accredited by The Joint Commission, licensed by the State of Connecticut,
and approved of by the States of New Jersey and New York.
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