95 Years Young

This time of year, many people’s thoughts turn to thoughts of spring. I am thinking much further ahead; I am thinking about November 16th.

November 16th is a very important day for Devereux. That is the day that we will celebrate, in grand style, the 95th anniversary of Devereux. As the largest non-profit provider of behavioral healthcare services to people with developmental, emotional and behavioral disorders, I think we can all be proud of how we have carried forward the vision of Helena Devereux for 95 years. In addition, we will be celebrating the 50th anniversary of the Institute for Clinical Training and Research (ICTR), a division of Devereux, that has made tremendous gains in school assessments; early childhood resilience programs; helping inner city schools to create a culture that is more conducive to learning; and training tomorrow’s mental healthcare professionals.

In order to help us celebrate these Devereux milestones, we will be inviting the Philadelphia business community and Devereux stakeholders to join us at the Independence Seaport Museum at Penn’s Landing for what should be a special night of celebration as we consider the many lives which have been positively changed as a result of our 95 years of service.

We will be sending out invitations to this Gala later in the year, but mark your calendars now for the fun and festivities on Friday, November 16th. We look forward to seeing you there.

 

Our New Mission Statement and Core Values

This year, Devereux celebrates its 95th anniversary and the 50th anniversary of the Institute for Clinical Training and Research (ICTR), a division of The Devereux Foundation. Both organizations were conceived by a true visionary, Helena T. Devereux.

Even before women had the right to vote, Miss Devereux fought for the educational needs of the forgotten children: those students, often seated in the back of the classroom, who could not reach their potential without extra help. She began her mission to help those special children and developed an individualized, positive educational approach, which she used successfully during her tenure as a school teacher in Philadelphia. However, she believed that these children would advance even more if their academic experiences were integrated with a structured, caring living environment. So, Miss Devereux took students into her rented summer home and spent three months working on their academic, vocational and social skills. Using that summer’s success as a stepping stone, she expanded her dream again and established the Devereux Schools in 1912, later to become The Devereux Foundation.

Over the next 45 years, Miss Devereux saw her vision evolve into a premier organization, dedicated to meeting the needs of individuals with special needs and designing their education and treatment through a multi-disciplinary approach. In one of her final milestones, Miss Devereux wanted to ensure that the work she started would continue beyond her lifetime. Shortly before her resignation as President of The Devereux Foundation in 1957, Helena Devereux established the Institute for Training and Research, later renamed the Institute for Clinical Training and Research. ICTR embodies and perpetuates her commitment to furthering the understanding of individuals with special needs and training professionals to meet those needs.

Now the responsibilities of furthering the mission set forth by Miss Devereux fall on the shoulders of the stakeholders of today’s Devereux. It is the responsibility of employees, board members, clients, families and others to continue blazing the trail of what has become the nation’s largest non-profit provider of services to children, adolescents and adults with behavioral, mental health and developmental disabilities. Along with the widespread recognition of ICTR and our financial strength, we are a thriving institution and will remain strong with the continued commitment of our supporters. I hope you will join me in this important, life-changing effort.

To help guide us in this charge, I am very pleased to announce Devereux’s newly revised Mission Statement and statement of our Core Values.

Our Mission
Devereux changes lives and nurtures human potential.
We inspire hope, ensure well-being, and promote
meaningful life choices. Our mission is achieved
through a wide range of services and supports
for individuals and their families.

Core Values
We support a respectful and integrated team approach.
We foster personal and professional growth of our staff.
We develop innovative and effective solutions.
We partner with families and communities.

In future blogs, I will share with you our Philosophy of Care and the exciting plans we are developing to celebrate the 95th anniversary of Devereux and the 50th anniversary of ICTR. Stayed tuned for the details!

And finally, a Happy Birthday to Miss Devereux, who would have turned 123 on Friday, February 2nd. While the rest of the country celebrates Ground Hog Day, we celebrate the birthday of our founder.

 

Combating Autism Act

In the final days of 2006, President Bush signed into law the Combating Autism Act, brought to the House by Congressman Joe Barton (R-Texas) and sponsored in the Senate by outgoing Senator Rick Santorum (R-Pennsylvania) and Christopher Dodd (D-Connecticut). It is important to note that House Members Mary Bono (R-California) and Diana DeGette (D-Colorado) originally introduced a companion bill in the House last year.

The new Combating Autism Act funds almost $1 billion over the next five years, to combat autism in four critical areas: research; screening; early detection; and early intervention. The new legislation will increase federal spending on Autism Spectrum Disorders by at least 50 percent.

Building on provisions contained in the Children’s Health Act of 2000, the bill requires the National Institutes of Health (NIH) to expand and intensify autism-related research, including possible environmental causes of autism. Research dollars will be allocated to the National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences, the National Institute of Mental Health and a number of other institutes at NIH. The bill also provides for statewide autism screening, diagnosis and intervention programs to be developed and to monitor the efficacy of statewide programs and systems. This will ensure that all children are screened for autism before their second birthday, and that children at risk for autism receive appropriate services as early as possible.

Today it is estimated that 1 in 166 children will be diagnosed with autism. In his remarks before the House, Congressman Barton spoke of the crucial need for this funding. “Today, little is understood about the causes and mechanisms of autism. Many studies have been conducted into researching possible genetic and environmental causes of autism, and scientists are learning more about this disorder and how its effects can be lessened or eliminated. But without question, more work needs to be done to pinpoint the true causes of autism and to come up with a cure.”

We are encouraged by the resources going to the understanding of autism and the fact that this is an excellent investment to reduce the future incidence of autism. We must however, not forget the current challenges facing today’s families, desperate for the resources to help their loved ones receive the most up-to-date educational and behavioral therapies. Devereux sees this incredible need every day as it serves hundreds of families and individuals with Autism Spectrum Disorders across the country.

Devereux is a national, leading provider of services to children, adolescents and adults with Autism Spectrum Disorder. Our history includes our founder, Helena Devereux, working closely with Dr. Leo Kanner, who first identified autism in children.
Devereux is proud of its legacy of assisting individuals with autism and their families. We look forward to continuing that mission.

 

The Read to Me Program

One of the great joys in life is taking time to read to children. I was lucky enough to do just that, along with approximately 90 other members of the Greater Philadelphia Chamber of Commerce, earlier this week.

Read to Me is a program, sponsored by the Chamber, which, among other initiatives, encourages business people to take time to visit with and read to pre-kindergarten and kindergarten students in the Philadelphia School District. Participants also made a $500 donation to the school’s library.

The participants started out the day meeting at the main school district building to discuss other ways to support our city schools. We then all boarded big, yellow school buses and traveled out to the school for our reading assignments. I read the soon to be classic, “Seven Blind Mice.”

When we got to the school, I was struck by a number of impressions. I couldn’t help but notice that the school I was at was connected to a Philadelphia high school that is the neighborhood school for a number of adolescents receiving residential care at Devereux. I was also struck by the enthusiasm and innocence of the young children who anxiously listened to me read aloud to them. It is discouraging to think about how easily these children can be converted from young and enthusiastic learners to adolescents that are at a high risk of dropping out of school and getting involved in the juvenile justice system. The Philadelphia School District, under the outstanding leadership of Paul Vallas, and with the support of the business community, is making important investments to help brighten these children’s futures. Devereux, with expertise in early childhood education, assessment tools, parent training and behavior management, is excited to be a part of that effort. There is much more to be done, but I think we can all take pride in knowing that, as Devereux stakeholders, we are all part of an organization that is working to make a difference for all children.

In the spirit of the holiday season, I hope all of you will join me in finding an opportunity to give back to the community. Whether you take the time to read a story to a child, invite someone to your home for a holiday meal or make a donation in the red kettle at your local store, take time to appreciate your many blessings in life.

Happy Holidays!

 

Devereux Staff Lead the Way, Again!

The employees of Devereux will never cease to amaze me. My executive assistant, Bobbi Lewis, has been with this organization for more than 40 years in a wide range of positions. Maggie McGill started in direct care more than 30 years ago and is now our Chief Financial Officer. Supervisors, teachers, housekeepers, and clinicians have given their entire careers to helping Devereux work with our society’s most challenged individuals.

Last year Devereux had its first United Way employee campaign in southeastern Pennsylvania. More than 400 employees from the corporate offices and our three southeastern Pennsylvania Centers pledged over $73,000 to support United Way’s wonderful work in our communities. Devereux was honored by the United Way as the outstanding new campaign in the region.

As we entered our second campaign in October of this year, I was worried about whether we could exceed our first year’s effort. Once again, our employees amazed me. Our 2007 campaign raised almost $95,000, an increase of more than 25%. Alba Martinez, the dynamic President of the Southeastern Pennsylvania United Way, said to us at the end of the campaign, “If everyone delivered like Devereux, our problems would be solved.”

 

Child Welfare

Last week several significant changes were made in the leadership of the Philadelphia Department of Human Services and a related State oversight agency. This occurred in response to a series of tragic deaths of Philadelphia children in the child welfare system. The changes must have been very difficult: the professionals that were asked to resign, or were fired or reassigned, are all good people who have devoted lengthy careers to children’s services. Despite good people trying hard, the results – at risk children not being protected – are not acceptable.

This is not only a Philadelphia problem. Florida, New Jersey, and many other states have also had children “lost” in the system and suffering, resulting in firings, law suits, and reorganizations. Responses in these other states have often included increased staffing and increased resources (laptops, vehicles, information systems) which are both helpful, but do not address the most fundamental problem. Decisions about when to remove a child from his or her family and how to move that child as quickly as possible to the best permanent placement are extremely difficult. It is very challenging for any bureaucracy – public or private – to support good case management in these situations.

Effective case management in child welfare must be very aggressive and proactive: not aggressive in removing a child from a family, but aggressive in following up on warning signs. Methamphetamine addiction is a child welfare crisis. Any hint of it must be followed up, not trusting that everything seems alright. Bureaucracies have a tendency to be reactive rather than aggressive and proactive. “The squeaky wheel gets the grease.” In fact, sometimes current laws do not allow agencies to intervene before actual abuse or neglect has occurred. Unfortunately, being reactive is often too late in child welfare.

Devereux has been a leading provider in several states that are wrestling with these issues. The best resolution we have seen so far is in Florida. The form of the change there was a significant privatization of most of the child welfare services in each district in the state. However, I do not think privatization itself was the reason for significantly improved results. Through privatization, some of the contractors developed much stronger case management models and increased their focus on prevention. These stronger case management models and emphasis on specific, proven prevention models can be implemented within an agency, as well as through privatization.

Of course, I believe that Devereux has developed by far the best case management and prevention models in our Florida operations. Fortunately, that opinion is supported by data and a series of accolades for our programs.

I hope we have an opportunity to share our experience with the City of Philadelphia. We must do better for all our children.

 

Where there is despair, hope

This week’s horrific violence in a Lancaster County schoolhouse wrenches our hearts. If possible, this tragedy was even more upsetting than other recent school violence. The beautiful rolling hills of Lancaster County, where I grew up, are widely known for its Mennonite and Amish citizens. These communities of peaceful folks reject much technology in order to lead simple and more authentic lives. The victims were among the most innocent and vulnerable of the Lancaster County “quiet Dutch” – young girls attending school not far from their homes. How could someone harm them? What can we do to prevent this from happening again?

I do not have answers to these questions. However, the critical issues in preventing such a heart-wrenching tragedy are clear. We must help individuals to recognize when they need social and emotional supports, and we must remove any barriers to getting those supports. The world today, even in bucolic Lancaster County, is evolving at a challenging pace. At times, we may need help to cope with that pace. What is required is the recognition that help is needed and a simple path to that support.

This week has been designated as Mental Health Awareness Week. Please do not ignore a family member, a co-worker, a friend - or yourself - who is struggling emotionally. Encourage and facilitate getting help by talking to a health care professional or, even simpler, beginning with an on-line screening tool such as those available for depression (www.nmha.org/ccd/support/screening.cfm). Information regarding how to talk to your children about community violence is also available at (www.apa.org/topics/schoolshooting.html).

Psychological research in the past several decades has provided impressive interventions to address mental health problems. In our grief, let us take responsibility for helping anyone in need. Help them to find the resources and tools that may comfort and support them.

 

A Haven for Tempest-tost

Miss Devereux believed that every child is a program. In the summer of 1912, Miss Devereux moved a few children who had been unsuccessful in a traditional school setting into her parents’ home to provide individualized educational programs that capitalized on their strengths – not their weaknesses.From that simple beginning, ninety-four years ago, Devereux has grown into the largest, most diversified, not-for-profit provider of behavioral health care services in the country.The diversity of Devereux’s services was made apparent to me, once again, when I visited one of our newest programs, the Esperanza program in Phoenix, Arizona.

Devereux’s Esperanza provides services for unaccompanied alien children. This program provides a safe, structured, nurturing, and therapeutic environment to children who have been detained for entering the country illegally by the Bureau of Immigration and Customs Enforcement and the Office of Refugee Resettlement.While a child is in Esperanza, Devereux assists either in locating a responsible relative in the United States or initiating a request for asylum based on unstable conditions in the child’s homeland.Since Mexican children are not eligible for the program, children in Devereux’s Esperanza hail from Guatemala, Honduras, El Salvador, and further. One child had found her way from Iraq, illegally crossed the border from Mexico, and began her search for a relative living in the United States.How fortunate for her that caring individuals with Devereux could fold her into their caring community at Esperanza.

As many as twenty-three children live in the two group homes of Esperanza. I was immediately struck by how clean and tidy the two houses were. The children themselves do all of the housekeeping. Eager to learn new skills and proud of their new surroundings, they do an excellent job. Although they all have endured significant hardship and are very poorly educated, the children seem to understand the opportunities available to them in the United States. These children look forward to working hard to make a new life for themselves and to sending money back to their families.

Equally amazing to me was the staff - caring, gentle, supportive, and very proud of the work they are doing. All of the staff members are bilingual, critical to working with children who speak little or no English when they arrive at Esperanza. Drawn to the sense of community in the Esperanza program, several of the present staff had migrated to Devereux from other agencies that participated in similar programs of transition for children so far from family and home.

Given the daily heart-breaking news of the war in the Middle East, complete with pictures of displaced families in war-ravaged neighborhoods, visiting Devereux’s Esperanza program made my day.