NNews January 2025

6 January 2025 Program Director Shares the Value of SBYSP from Personal Experience “My life has truly been shaped, and continues to be by Preferred Behavioral Health Group’s School Based Youth Services Program (SBYSP) in Brick Schools and I amso grateful to be a part of it,” shared Nick Spanola, MS, LPC, Program Director and Former Program Participant of the SBYSP program at Brick Memorial High School, which he graduated from in 2012. “After my freshman year, I was selected as a Peer Leader through the SBYSP, inwhich I had the opportunity to work closely with counselors to facilitate workshops for freshmen students about transitioning to NJ4S and SBYSP Work in Tandem to Prevent and Address Mental Health Challenges for Youth (continued from page 5) For example, during the summer of 2023, CCT conducted a survey of school administrators, educators, clinicians, counselors, social workers, other nonprofit organization representatives, students, parents, and caregivers to identify the most pressing issues in Mercer County. Based on the responses, this county’s NJ4S provides education in four areas of focus: mental health and wellness, with an emphasis on suicide prevention; anti-bullying and violence prevention; substance use prevention; and sexual health, as Lovaglio explained. Partnership with NJAMHAA Strengthens these Programs NJAMHAA established the SBYSP Subcommittee of its Children’s Practice Group in 2021 to bolster advocacy to restore SBYSP funding that would have been cut from the State Budget, and it was successful. The group later expanded to include NJ4S staff andwas renamed the School Based Subcommittee. “This was a good move because the programs complement each other,” stated Richardson from Legacy, who co-chairs the subcommittee. “We share different evidence-based curriculums and other resources, andwe continue to work together on advocacy.” “This subcommittee provides another avenue for our collective voices to be heard and understood, and it succeeded in continuing and increasing funding that allows us to do our critical work through SBYSP,” said Gonzales from Pineland Regional, who co-chairs this group. “The partnership I experience withNJAMHAA has been super helpful and critical.” high school,” Spanola said. “As I moved forward in high school, I started having more difficult life situations that brought on a lot of stress for me. Due tomy comfort with the SBYSP at Brick Memorial High School, I was able to get connectedwith counseling services there. This support greatly helpedme navigate these difficult times inmy life.” “I loved being a part of this program, and learned so much about the benefits of focusing on mental health for students and developed a love for this field of work. My involvement in the SBYSP played a huge part in me pursuing a career in the mental health field,” Spanola added. He earned a Bachelor’s degree in Psychology and a Master’s degree in Clinical Mental Health Counseling, and completed internships at the Brick Memorial High School SBYSP. He joined the staff as a Youth Development Counselor about six years ago, was promoted to Mental Health Counselor at Brick Township High School and again more recently to the position of Program Director.