Wednesday, February 20, 2008

Coalition Meeting

Make it a priority!!! March 3rd will be our first Virginia Suicide Prevention Council (now Coalition) meeting in a long while. First the particulars:

Where:
Sheraton Park South. You can click the link to get directions or other needed hotel information.
Who: Anyone interested in the suicide prevention & intervention. You do NOT have to be an "official" member of the Coalition. All stakeholders in suicide prevention are welcome. Come ready to work!
When: 10:00am to 3:00pm
What: The agenda is still in flux... YOUR input is desired. Please forward any ideas, needs, what if's to me by February 29th.

Please RSVP!! I need to give the hotel a head count.

Why make time for this??? It is incredibly difficult to eek out time to participate in yet ANOTHER meeting. The VASPC has quietly toiled away for several years. You deserve some recognition! You deserve to see the fruits of hard work! You deserve LUNCH! We need your time, talent and passion to continue moving forward.

What I need from each of you...

If you know of someone who has done tremendous work in Suicide Prevention, Intervention and Education, please send me an email so that they might be recognized for their work at the Coalition meeting.

Would you send me any training numbers, information about the kinds of trainings you are doing, groups trained, etc so that we can compile this information into a report. I am not going to be so brave as to promise it for the Coalition meeting, but it could happen. At least we could have a rough draft-a general gist, something. You can send it to me by February 29th. This would be an incredible document to have for our state representatives and for future federal funding opportunities.

I'd like to create a roster of VASPC participants. Will you send me your contact information also? I would like to be able to distribute this as a resource to other Coaltion members. You can send it to me by February 29th.

Even if you cannot attend the meeting, please forward any information you have about your work (or your organizations work) that we might compile into our report. You can send it to me. If you can't be there send us your good thoughts, energy and vibes. You will be missed!

Please send all of this informaiton by February 29th to cletsom@theplanningcouncil.org. (That includes the RSVP.) I will be out of town a bunch between now and the 3rd; but, I will make every effort to compile everything for the 3rd.

Spread the word. We don't have nearly enough people on our email flash list. Get the word out about the Coalition and about the meeting.

Hope to see you all in a mere two weeks.

Olweus Certification Training

You (or a member of your staff) are invited to submit an application to take part in training for certification as a trainer in the Olweus Bullying Prevention Program. The training will take place June 17-19, 2008 in Williamsburg, Virginia.

The purpose of the training is to expand our cadre of well-trained individuals in Virginia who are certified to provide training and follow-up consultation to Bullying Prevention Coordinating Committees at elementary, intermediate, middle, and/or junior high schools that desire to implement the Olweus Bullying Prevention Program. A description of the certification process and requirements for certification is attached.

If you are interested in taking part in this training for certification, we invite you to complete the attached application form. The deadline for returned applications is April 20, 2008. Although we hope to accommodate all interested individuals, we are committed to ensuring that the training is as interactive as possible and therefore will limit the number of participants.
A selection process will take into account such factors as the experience of the individuals seeking training, the expressed need for certified trainers in localities and within school divisions and the familiarity of applicants with the model. Virginia applicants will receive priority. Applicants will be notified of their participation in the TOT by May 10, 2008. The training will be provided by a team of experienced trainers including Jane Riese and Katie Moffett.

The cost of the certification training and the follow-up consultation is $3,900. This fee will include:

A three-day initial training (June 17-19, 2008)
A training notebook, including a CD-ROM containing PowerPoint slides and electronic versions of handouts needed for trainings A copy of all required and recommended Olweus Bullying Prevention Program materials Ongoing telephone consultation (approximately 15 hours total) with an Expert Trainer over a 24 month period A two-day booster training (date to be determined at the initial training)

If you have any questions about this invitation or any of the conditions described in this mailing, please do not hesitate to contact Katie Moffett at the Center for School-Community-Collaboration at 804-827-2622 or email cfmoffett@vcu.edu. For information about the Olweus Bullying Prevention Program, we encourage you to visit the website for the program at www.clemson.edu/olweus.
Please feel free to share this information with appropriate colleagues.

Thank you for your interest in the Olweus Bullying Prevention Program. We hope that you will consider submitting an application!

Friday, February 15, 2008

GOSAP Grant Program

The Governor's Office for Substance Abuse Prevention (GOSAP) is pleased to announce the 2008-2009 Safe and Drug-Free Schools and Communities Act
(SDFSCA) Grant Program. The Request for Proposals (RFP) outlining the program components and specifics is now available at http://www.gosap.virginia.gov/SDFSCA/announcement2008-2009.htm . GOSAP SDFSCA grant programs are intended to supplement the SDFSCA funds that flow directly from the Virginia Department of Education to every local school division for substance abuse and violence prevention programming. In addition, community needs assessments regarding youth substance abuse and violence may also seek GOSAP SDFSCA funds.

Organizations who intend to submit a proposal for this funding are required to have a representative attend one of the three RFP Workshops. Workshops are being held in Newport News on February 29, 2008, in Wytheville on March 5, 2008, and in Stafford County on March 7, 2008. Please see the web site (see above) for specifics regarding the workshops.

If you are not able to reach the web site, or still have questions after reading the RFP and information, please contact Joy Rogers-Murphy at the VCU Center for School-Community Collaboration at (804) 828-1482 or rodgersmurlj@vcu.edu.

Tuesday, February 12, 2008

Virginia Data

As you are aware, injuries are a leading public health problem in Virginia. In 2006, there were 4,004 injury related deaths and 38,635 injury related hospitalizations. The Division of Injury and Violence Prevention, Virginia Department of Health just released Injury in Virginia, 2006, an in-depth analysis of injury-related inpatient hospitalization discharges and deaths in Virginia for the calendar year 2006. There are two new additions to the Injury in Virginia, 2006 report this year:

1. A Virginia Injury Review, which examines hospitalization and death related injuries in Virginia over the last five years (2002-2006)

2. The inclusion of 2006 hospitalization and death injury data for each of Virginia’s 35 Health Districts

The Injury in Virginia 2006 report and other injury related reports can be found on the web at http://www.vahealth.org/civp/datacivp.asp. If you have any questions or need additional data please contact me by phone at 804-864-7745 or by email at christina.sloan@vdh.virginia.gov.

Men Get Depression

Beginning in May, 2008, PBS Stations will air a documentary titled "Men Get Depression." This is part of a larger initiative on men and depression that can be found at http://www.mengetdepression.com. The web site looks very interesting.

Wednesday, February 6, 2008

Job Openings at SPAN


Development Director
Suicide Prevention Action Network USA (SPAN USA) seeks energetic self starter with passion for mental health and suicide prevention to build donor base, plan and manage annual giving campaign, cultivate major donors, organize annual fundraiser and develop grant/foundation portfolio.

Bachelor's degree, excellent communication skills, 5-7 years experience in development at a non-profit or philanthropic organization, proficiency in MS Word and basic knowledge of spreadsheet and database software required. Click here for more details. Send resume with cover letter and salary history to info@spanusa.org.

Administrative Assistant/Bookkeeper
Suicide Prevention Action Network USA (SPAN USA) seeks energetic self starter to manage day-to-day office administrative operation of small organization with focus on mental health and suicide prevention. The part-time position is 32 hours per week in eight-hour days, but alternate arrangements will be considered. Casual atmosphere and excellent opportunity to support the contribution of a nonprofit!

Three to five years administrative experience, including two years bookkeeping and/or accounting, excellent communication skills, and proficiency in MS Office and database applications including Access. Knowledge of QuickBooks is required and experience with web content management is preferred. Click here for more details. Send resume with cover letter to info@spanusa.org.

Monday, February 4, 2008

2005 Mortality Data Available

WISQARS Updated with 2005 Mortality Data

CDC’s Web-based Injury Statistics Query and Reporting System (WISQARS) has now been updated with 2005 mortality data from NCHS' National Vital Statistics System. To access this data online, visit the WISQARS website.



For a summary of the latest national suicide data, prepared by Dr. John McIntosh, visit the American Association of Suicidology’s website.