United Way's PATH Receives THINC! Award
Thursday, June 4, 2015
United Way Fox Cities accepts a THINC! Award for United Way's PATH for Students program. (Left to right: Peter Kelly, Kristine Sack, Holly Keyser, Karen Johnston, Justin Dluqolenski, Nanci Micke, Lois Mischler and Mary Wisnet)
Contributor: Susan Perri, Marketing and Communications Assistant at United Way Fox Cities
Although the month of May was officially "Mental Health
Awareness Month", mental health issues are on our minds year-round.
Because one in four people experiences mental illness in a given
year, improving access to mental health services is one of United
Way Fox Cities' top priorities. We've tackled this priority in
several ways including investing in mental health counseling and
support services that, in 2014, served 5,772 adults and children
across the Fox Cities. In addition, United Way Fox Cities' PATH (Providing Access
to Healing) for Students has become a leader in the relatively new
arena of providing school-based mental health services.
In the past year, United Way Fox Cities' PATH has received
numerous accolades for eliminating barriers to care for students
such as long waiting lists, limited financial resources, scheduling
conflicts and lack of parental support. United Way Fox Cities' PATH
received recognition from media across the state including
Wisconsin Public Radio and the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. Other
communities as far away as Sioux Falls, South Dakota and government
entities including the Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction
have reached out for information on PATH's structure as they look
to start similar programs.
Most recently, during the fourth annual Insight Publications' Technology & Human
Innovation Networking Conference (THINC!), United Way Fox
Cities was honored to accept an Innovation Award for PATH. United
Way's PATH for Students was awarded in the "People" category
for providing school-based mental health services for nearly 1,000
students in the Fox Cities since its inception in 2008. Through
PATH, more than three-quarters of participating students have
reported improved relationships with family and friends, reduced
symptoms and increased functioning and generally "feeling better
about life." THINC! Judges were impressed by the strategic way
United Way Fox Cities set about tackling the issue of teen
depression and suicide, and especially, the positive metrics that
prove the PATH program is making an important impact in the
community. "It's almost open innovation, the way they tackled this
community problem," one judge said. "They proved that a
long-standing nonprofit organization has the ability to be
innovative."