CENTER FOR HEALTH AND LEARNING LTD

The Center for Health and Learning (CHL) is a 501 (c) (3) organization founded in 1999 serving VT and New England. CHL's mission is to build a foundation for healthy communities through educational resources, professional development and practice improvement, research, policy development, evaluation, and consult.

CHL oversees the work of two principal programs: the VT Suicide Prevention Center and Umatter®. The VT Suicide Prevention Center (VT SPC) is a public-private partnership with federal, state, foundation, and other private funding sources. The VT SPC oversees the work of and is advised by the VT Suicide Prevention Coalition (The Coalition) which consists of over 70 organizations, entities, educational facilities, and associations representing children, youth, young adults, adults, seniors, veterans, individuals in recovery, and more, and which generates recommendations and priorities for policy and suicide prevention work around the state. CHL convenes The Coalition to get input and advise programming. The VT SPC also is the central organizing resource for implementation of Zero Suicide systems. Umatter®, designated a national best practice program, is both a public information campaign and a set of proprietary trainings and resources targeted to youth, parents, schools, professionals in health care and mental health, and general communities. Trainees can identify pre-suicidal behaviors, learn what to say and do, how and where to get help, make referrals and recommend resources, and receive guidance on profession-specific prevention and postvention techniques.

In addition, CHL has: 



* Developed and managed the Rutland Suicide Safer Care Project, which reduces barriers to suicide safe care in Rutland, VT through a partnership with three health care organizations;
* Oversees multiple projects related to substance use disorder, including a long-term relationship with the VT Department of Health's Division of Alcohol and Drug Abuse to implement a College Symposium on Campus Substance Abuse and provide substance misuse prevention trainings; the offering of courses in Alcohol, Tobacco, and Other Drugs education to K – 12 teachers throughout VT; and the coordination of trainings for Emergency Medicine staff and others who come into contact with people at risk of opioid overdoses;

* Serves as the backbone organization for Connecting Rural Communities, a project to improve suicide prevention efforts and provide culturally appropriate mental health services to Abenaki communities in Grand Isle county.

CHL has substantial background and experience working with coalitions, schools, community and health care providers, faith leaders, health and mental health organizations, parents, and state and national organizations. Since its inception, CHL has served more than 35,000 professionals and community members; delivered services for more than 100 projects with scores of subprojects within; and developed and promoted numerous local and statewide health initiatives using face to face, online, and blended formats and through symposia, conferences, and institutes. In the coordination and delivery of Umatter, CHL has engaged 130 schools and 20 communities in Vermont, working with school staff, youth serving professionals, community members, and young people. From CHL’s 2020 Annual report: 250 professionals from education, health, mental health and community serving agencies received training on the issue of substance use disorder; over 200 professionals in health care received training and technical assistance to integrate of Zero Suicide systems, almost 100 schools and organizations participated in Umatter® trainings, and over 320 professionals and community members participated in the VT Suicide Prevention Symposium. In 2021, CHL delivered over 50 trainings and events engaging more than 2000 participants.