How to Help SNLP

We've tried, and failed, to secure support for SNLP.

When McLean and MCPAP terminated the program, one of the Powers That Be smirked and said "I don't think this program has the support you think it does." I really wanted him to be wrong, wanted to prove him wrong. Or at least that he was only thinking of support among the rich and powerful -- the big donors, hospitals, and politicians. After all, I didn't really expect better from hospitals that can make money from doing what SNLP offered for free, and politicians who routinely say what they think you want to hear and then do what they planned all along.

But I really thought all the people saying that they valued the program would back up those words with action, that my years of supporting schools would result in receiving support when we needed it. I thought people would stay actively connected, encourage donations, and spread the word. But instead, I couldn't get people in districts with blocked emails to even call their IT department. In three years, we got only FOUR donations -- no one so much as held a bake sale. And when I was drowning in all the work I was doing for no pay, people would "help" by suggesting the name of a grant -- essentially just giving me more work and implying I simply wasn't trying hard enough.

I tried really hard. My family is teetering on bankruptcy, with no hope of ever retiring. But worse, I've exhausted my belief that doing good is the right thing to do. Volunteering, prioritizing what people need over my own benefit, looking out for everyone, not just myself... all feel really foolish now.

So, this whole section is going to be deeply bitter. But I'm pretty sure no one will every read it, so it doesn't matter.

Contacting Legislators

Contacting Legislators to ask them to include SNLP in the upcoming budget

Appears to have been an absolute waste of time.

I foolishly really thought we had a chance -- the Senator who sponsored us every year before was now among the Leadership for the Ways and Means Committee, who decide. But nope. And then his Chief of Staff told me they simply don't want to fund something that would be returning for more money in the future. So they only fund organizations that don't need funding, I guess. And that seems to be the case -- after all, even though all MCPAP did with the first $200k they gave them was to try to shut down SNLP, they were given $500 to start a school program, and this year another $1million to continue it. (It does case management and telehealth referral for two towns.)

I just wish he'd been so frank the first time we lost. They really like to say they think SNLP is really important and encourage us to "keep trying." And that's why I no longer have any savings at all.

Outreach to Schools

Outreach to schools

We have one more year from the Misanthropic Fund's grant, so the program can offer consultation and can subsidize the fees for Professional Development through the end of this school year. What it doesn't fund (has never funded) is the many hours it takes to remind schools that the program is available.

In addition to it being unpaid, it's pretty frustrating -- navigating limits on bulk emails, getting automatically blocked by the IT systems in many districts, and having no idea if anything is actually getting through, since I rarely get any responses (and then a significant portion of those are requests to get off the mailing list).

So other than the one email at the beginning of the year, and perhaps one near the end to let folks know whether they can access materials once this website dies, I won't be doing any more outreach. I will be DELIGHTED to respond to anyone who contacts me, but it's just too depressing to keep shouting into the void.

So outreach is up to all of you. SNLP services are still available - spread the word. Ask your PD coordinator to book a presentation, tell your colleagues and those in other schools about the program, and encourage them to contact me for information or explore the website. Or you can give them this summary.

Funding

Seeking other funding sources

If you think SNLP should continue, and that there must be a way to fund it, by all means look into that. Contact me and I can give you all the info you'd ned for any grant applications or anything else. If you reached the point where a funding source needed to talk to me, I'm happy to do so. But the initial steps of researching grants, donors, and other options generally involves going down many dead ends to find the few opportunities that might bear fruit. And I have neither the time nor the heart to do that.

The one area I am exploring (and welcome suggestions) is finding a organization that offers PD to see if they'd add me to their presenters, so that I could continue to do the presentations I've developed.

Utilizing Services

Utilizing SNLP Services

Like I said, this whole section is rather depressed and bitter. I developed a program, I loved offering the services, and many, many people would me that the services were vital and appreciated. And so I spent the last three years bankrupting my family trying to get anyone to go past saying they valued the program and actually DO something to keep it alive. And instead of doing the actual work, I increasingly have spent my time and energy begging for a living. Asking if anyone thinks my efforts are worth anything, with a growing sense the answer is "take the hint already."

If there's just one year left, I'd REALLY like to spend it doing the work. Answering consults, doing presentations, connecting with schools. So the best way to show your support, to communicate that you think SNLP hasn't just ben a foolish waste of effort, is to simply USE the services.

Consults Call any time you have a question or would like to consult about a situation in your school. Or email. You don't have to schedule it in advance, but if you would prefer that, you can - especially useful if you would like to have a meeting for your staff to address a specific topic or issue.

Professional Development Live or webinar, with nearly 20 topics to choose from. Ask your PD coordinator to schedule a presentation! We have funding to subsidize the cost if your school couldn't afford it last year, but that fund won't last and it's first-booked, first-funded. If your calendar is full, you could host an After School Seminar -- you provide the space, and if we get enough people coming, the grant will fund it.

Website Resources Explore the website, download or request resources, read the blog. And let me know if you do. Honestly, I've stopped looking at the Blog because it is so depressing. Back when I wrote and emailed the newsletter, I could pretend people were reading it. But the blog has a counter.

Raising the Profile of SNLP

We've reached out to newspapers, trying to get them interested in this program. You'd think given how much every one loves to talk about caring about mental health in schools, and about not wasting money, the death of such a cheap program with the ability to offer support to the whole state right now would be interesting, esp. when viewed with the wild amounts of money being thrown at MCPAP and Birch Center. But we never even got called back. If you want to give it a shot -- go for it.

If you think your local paper or school organization would be interested in hearing more about SNLP, or you have the time to work on getting a response from the Boston Globe, or NPR, or anyone, please go ahead. If you need more information about the program to better describe it, email or call me. Once your efforts reach the point of setting up a meeting or interview, just let me know. The same link that can be used to set up a pre-scheduled Consult can be used to schedule any sort of meeting or interview.

You can also freely share information on social media, or any other networks you have. The more people hear about the program, the more schools can benefit from it, before it goes away for good.