Addiction

Child Wellness: Resources from the Fred Rogers Center

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Fred Rogers had deep compassion for the wellbeing of every child. Inspired by his legacy and drawing from his work, these resources were created and are offered to encourage and support children and caregivers on a variety of issues related to child wellness. These resources are developed and collected by staff of the Fred Rogers Center with support from faculty of Saint Vincent College, many community partners, and students in the Incubator 143 Lab. Extensive research is conducted in the Fred Rogers Archive to build a deep understanding of the many ways Fred worked to support children. This research guides each of the resources you will find below.

Early Learning

Kindness in the Classroom: Resources for Pre-K & Kindergarten

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The Kindness Curriculum is a free 24-lesson guide designed to help Pre-K and Kindergarten students attend to their emotions, self-regulate, and care for themselves and others. Developed and researched by the Center for Healthy Minds at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, the Kindness Curriculum has shown to have a positive impact on academic performance, peer relationships, and teacher-perceived social competence. 

PBS Wisconsin and the Center for Healthy Minds have teamed up to share more about the Kindness Curriculum through the video series Kindness in the Classroom. Watch the videos for an introduction to the foundational concepts of mindfulness in a classroom setting. Then, check out the additional resources to hear insights directly from teachers, and even practice mindfulness yourself! You can download the Kindness Curriculum, read about standards alignment, and learn about the research behind the curriculum.

Science

Getting Lost in “The Great Pause” Online Discussion

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Getting Lost in “The Great Pause” Online Discussion

This event took place on Thursday April 30 at 7pm. Watch a recording of the event below.

We’re experiencing the coronavirus outbreak as one, yet we all have different coping styles. Are you focused on logistics? Struggling to stay motivated in a strangely isolated world? Are you unable to concentrate? Or confused about your sudden jumble of new roles?

American Graduate

Connect NY: Trauma Informed Education

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According to state education officials, the number of students facing mental health challenges is dramatically increasing.  To adapt, schools are incorporating Trauma Informed Practices into the classroom. We will discuss why trauma is affecting more children, and look at the skills educators are adopting to help them cope. Panelists

Dr. John M. Garruto, D.Ed., NCSP, School Psychologist for the Oswego City School District; President, New York Association of School Psychologists

Dr. Sandy Addis, Executive Director, National Dropout Prevention Center

Melissa S. Evans, Director of Student Support Services, Syracuse City School District; Co-chair, Trauma and Resilience Advocacy Committee
Tracey Musarra Marchese, MSW, LCSW-R, Professor of Practice, School of Social Work, Falk College, Syracuse University

Watch this episode on WSKG TV October 19th, 2019 at 5:00a.m.

Join us as we uncover compelling and unexpected stories throughout New York State and the history and systemic forces influencing current realities. Connect: NY is produced by WCNY (Syracuse, NY) and aired in partnership with WSKG.

Statewide Rallies Call For More Mental Health Housing Funds

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Statewide rallies are being held weekly demanding the Governor increased state funding for mental health housing. The ‘Bring It Home Coalition’ is staging rallies each Thursday in Long Island, New York City, Syracuse and here in Buffalo, targeting state lawmakers. 

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New Way For Physicians To Manage A Patient’s Mental Health

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There is a new program available to primary care physicians in assisting patients with their mental health care needs. It’s mean to help patients manage their behavioral health, substance abuse and mental illnesses.    

Health

Cornell Graduate Students Say Their University Has A Mental Health Crisis

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About one hundred Cornell graduate students gathered outside the Cornell Health Center on campus Wednesday afternoon. They were calling for an external review of the mental health services at the University. Students shared their own mental health struggles. They described not being taken seriously by faculty and having to go off campus to find therapists. They say getting appointments is difficult unless they are in crisis, suicidal or in academic trouble.

binghamton

Report: New York School Psychologists Spread Thin

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Some schools in New York state are struggling to find enough school psychologists, according to a report from the New York State School Boards Association. But even in districts that meet the minimum federal guidelines, administrators want more psychologists on staff.

Crime and Justice

PA Officials: Budget Constraints Limit Care For Mentally Ill Inmates

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KEYSTONE CROSSWORDS – Following a U.S. Department of Justice investigation in 2014, the Disability Rights Network of Pennsylvania filed a lawsuit against the Pennsylvania Department of Corrections, demanding changes to provide better care for mentally ill inmates. DOC settled in 2015, and three years later, the state says it no longer uses solitary confinement as prevalently. “We no longer utilize the same level of segregation that we did prior to the reports and the investigations,” said Lynn Patrone, DOC’s mental health advocate. She said the department is working to meet the requirement that the settlement put forward to divert inmates into treatment instead of solitary confinement. Patrone said even when the misconduct of inmates with mental illness results in solitary confinement, they are offered 20 hours of out-of-cell activities per week.

News

PA Psychiatrist Sees Health Trends Among Blue Collar Workers

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HARRISBURG (WSKG) — A Pennsylvania psychiatrist and his colleagues are noticing some troubling mental health trends related to joblessness among their working-class patients. And those trends seem inextricably tied with the current political climate.  Dr. Kenneth Thompson is the president of the American Association for Social Psychiatry. He’s based in Pittsburgh, and said many of the people he sees fall into a specific category–they’re white, male, high school-educated former Democratic voters who supported Donald Trump for president. And he said increasing numbers of those people are struggling with addiction or mental health issues that seem tied to the trouble they’re having in the current economy. “The overall sense is there’s a population that is more highly stressed than it has been in the past,” he said.

Education

Independent Lens Presents 'Newtown'

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On December 14, 2012, a disturbed young man committed a horrific mass shooting in Newtown, Connecticut that took the lives of 20 elementary school children and six educators. Filmed over the course of nearly three years, Newtown uses deeply personal, never-before-heard testimonies to tell the story of the aftermath of the deadliest mass shooting of schoolchildren in American history. Through raw and heartbreaking interviews with parents, siblings, teachers, doctors, and first responders, Newtown documents a traumatized community still reeling from the senseless killing, fractured by grief but driven toward a sense of purpose. There are no words of compassion or reassurance that can bring back those who lost their lives during the shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School. Instead, Snyder delves into the lives and homes of those who remain, all of whom have been indelibly changed by the events.

Education

Guest Perspective: Helping Families Cope with Incarceration

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Editor’s Note: WSKG invited community partner and local service organization Mothers and Babies Perinatal Network to share insight on initiatives that are helping families going through incarceration. Through the Eyes of Children
Let’s imagine, for a moment, that you are 8 years old again. You are spending a regular Tuesday night with your mother and two younger siblings. The normal evening routine was underway…dinner was over, you are bathed, in your pajamas, and playing with your favorite toy while your mother puts your little brother and sister to bed. Next, you and your mother meet in your bedroom to read your favorite bedtime story.

Cultural History

The Battlefield is Hard on a Boy: Suicide in the Civil War

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Editor’s Note: WSKG has asked faculty and graduate students in the History Department at Binghamton University to explore the history behind PBS’s new drama Mercy Street. In today’s blog post, Professor Diane Sommerville discusses the topic of suicide and the Civil War.  

Warning: this post contains spoilers. The Battlefield is Hard on a Boy: Suicide in the Civil War
In Episode 4 of Mercy Street, the daring escape of Confederate private Tom Fairfax ends with his suicide. Tom’s boyhood friend Frank Stringfellow spirits him out of Mansion House Hospital under cover of darkness and escorts him to nearby Confederate lines so that Tom can rejoin his regiment. As Frank prepares his departure, Tom begins muttering, looking pre-occupied and anxious.