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The Northwest Mental Health Technology Transfer Center (MHTTC) provides workforce training and technical assistance (TA) to support evidence-based school mental health practices. Historically, this support targeted school professionals through in-person and online trainings, workshops, and coaching. However, in response to COVID-19 restrictions, all support moved to online formats, and the Center introduced trainings for families and caregivers. The purpose of this article is to present preliminary process and outcome data that compare the reach and impact of support before and following COVID-19-related restrictions. Results suggest that transition to online support resulted in a wider reach and a more diverse audience, with no decrease in trainee satisfaction and perceived impact. Furthermore, families and caregivers reported positive gains in knowledge and behaviors following participation in a virtual youth suicide prevention training. Together, these findings suggest that online training and TA can provide tangible benefits to professionals and family members who support student mental health.

On 10 April 2019, the Event Horizon Telescope project published an image based on data collected from eight radio observatories of the supermassive black hole in galaxy Messier 87. In [...]

The present study uses an ecological systems perspective to examine how parental involvement in school-related activities in sixth grade influences early adolescents' school bonding and academic achievement in eighth grade. Results of multilevel models of multiple data sources (i.e., adolescents, parents, and principals) suggested that parents' involvement in school, as reported by the adolescent in sixth grade, was a significant predictor of school bonding and academic grades in eighth grade. Furthermore, parent reports of guidance, support, and involvement in school and non-school activities were unrelated to their adolescents' grades and school bonding. Finally, schools' efforts to engage parents did not consistently predict an association between parental involvement and adolescent outcomes.

In this article, we describe the results of a formative evaluation of a coaching model designed to support recipients of funding through the Children, Youth, and Families at Risk (CYFAR) initiative. Results indicate that CYFAR coaches draw from a variety of types of coaching and that CYFAR principle investigators (PIs) are generally satisfied with the coaches' methods. Areas in which PIs would like to see changes to the coaching model include amount of technical coaching and amount of help with specific CYFAR funding requirements. We review strategies for incorporating this feedback into practice and discuss implications for CYFAR and for Extension in general.

In this article, we describe how a peer-coaching model has been applied to support community-based Extension programming through the Children, Youth, and Families at Risk (CYFAR) initiative. We describe the general approaches to coaching that have been used to help with CYFAR program implementation, evaluation, and sustainability efforts; we discuss strategies coaches use to maintain effective relationships with CYFAR stakeholders; and we review common characteristics of effective coaches. Finally, we discuss implications that coaching strategies might have for Extension programming in general and present future directions for research and practice related to peer coaching.

In this article, we describe how the recent movement towards evidence-based programming has impacted Extension. We review how the emphasis on implementing such programs with strict fidelity to an underlying program model may be at odds with Extension's strong history of adapting programming to meet the unique needs of children, youth, families, and communities. We describe several techniques that Extension professionals can use to balance program fidelity and adaptability. We suggest that Extension stakeholders may be best served when we tailor certain aspects of interventions without changing the intervention's core components that are responsible for positive outcomes.

The purpose of this study was to identify predictors of depressive symptoms among adolescents using concepts drawn from two theoretical models that underlie popular youth-focused programs. Specifically, we assessed the degree to which family-level risk factors increase the likelihood of depressive symptoms, and the degree to which community and/or school-level protective/promotive factors either buffer against risk, or directly lead to lower levels of depressive symptoms. Results indicate that three of the four hypothesized risk factors were associated with elevated levels of depressive symptoms. In addition, the protective/promotive factors had more promotive than protective effects because they were directly related to lower levels of symptoms. Implications for youth-focused programming are discussed.

We describe the results of a study designed to assess knowledge, perceptions, and attitudes towards evidence-based and other prevention programs among county Extension educators. We examined differences across educators from Family and Consumer Sciences (FCS) and 4-H Youth Development. Analyses based on a multi-state sample of educators revealed significant differences such that, compared to their 4-H counterparts, FCS educators were more knowledgeable of evidence-based programs and had more favorable perceptions and attitudes towards evidence-based and other prepackaged prevention programs. These findings suggest that Extension administrators should work to encourage the use of evidence-based and other prevention programs, particularly within 4-H.

Advances in the field of prevention science have resulted in strategies that target various youth outcomes. In recent years, numerous "best practices" lists have been developed to help professionals identify such strategies. Some scholars have questioned the quality of these lists and cautioned that there are flaws in evaluations of many prevention strategies. The purpose of this paper is to review these criticisms and provide applied family scholars with suggestions regarding how to identify effective strategies.

Introduction: With the changing roles of female military personnel, it is important to understand how wartime experiences and their impacts are similar and different for military men and women. This study examined gender differences in exposure to wartime events and post-deployment post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and depressive symptoms, as well as mediators of these relations, in a large sample of male and female active duty Air Force personnel.Materials/methods: The study included data from male (N = 21,879) and female (N = 3,741) active duty Air Force personnel who had experienced at least one deployment and completed the anonymous U.S.A.F. Community Assessment (CA) Survey in 2011. Participants reported on the number of wartime events they experienced during deployment (e.g., discharging weapons, seeing dead bodies), their perceptions of self-efficacy and the cohesiveness of their units, and their depression and PTSD symptoms post-deployment. We examined mean-level differences between men and women on both independent (wartime experiences) and dependent (PTSD and depression symptoms) measures, basic correlations among variables, and mediation of the relations between wartime experiences and mental health outcomes by unit cohesion and self-efficacy.Results: Participants reported exposure to 0-6 wartime events during deployment. A greater number of wartime events was associated with higher rates of PTSD and depression and lower ratings of unit cohesion and self-efficacy for both men and women. Men reported more wartime events, while women reported higher rates of PTSD and depression at all levels of exposure to wartime events, including zero. Depression and PTSD were most highly related to reports of being injured during deployment and feelings of danger of being killed. Unit cohesion partially mediated the relation between wartime experience and mental health for both men and women, but self-efficacy was a partial mediator only for women. Direct effects of wartime exposure on subsequent mental health were also observed for both groups.Conclusion: There are similarities and differences in the wartime experiences of military men and women. Increased exposure to combat experiences is a risk factor for both groups. Women appear to have greater vulnerability to PTSD and depression at all levels of combat exposure, and also report lower levels of unit cohesion and self-efficacy. It is possible that interventions that boost self-efficacy and unit cohesion could promote resilience for combat-exposed military personnel. Because self-efficacy operated differently for men and women, the role of this variable in post-deployment adjustment should be examined more closely. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study focused on married couples in a region of the United States that previous research has identified as having high rates of both religiosity and divorce. As a result, this study was designed to examine the effects of religiosity, forgiveness, and spousal empathy on marital adjustment. To investigate these constructs, married couples in this region were recruited (n = 829) to participate in a cross-sectional, self-report telephone survey. Results indicate that religious service attendance and spousal empathy have direct positive effects on marital adjustment in European American married men; while religious service attendance, forgiveness, and spousal empathy have direct positive effects on marital adjustment in European American married women. Among African-American participants, only spousal empathy had a direct effect on marital adjustment for both men and women. Finally, spousal empathy moderated the association between previous marriage and current marital adjustment among European American married women. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of this study was to identify predictors of depressive symptoms among adolescents using concepts drawn from two theoretical models that underlie popular youth-focused programs. Specifically, we assessed the degree to which family-level risk factors increase the likelihood of depressive symptoms, and the degree to which community and/or school-level protective/promotive factors either buffer against risk, or directly lead to lower levels of depressive symptoms. Results indicate that three of the four hypothesized risk factors were associated with elevated levels of depressive symptoms. In addition, the protective/promotive factors had more promotive than protective effects because they were directly related to lower levels of symptoms. Implications for youth-focused programming are discussed. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]

In this article, we describe the results of a formative evaluation of a coaching model designed to support recipients of funding through the Children, Youth, and Families at Risk (CYFAR) initiative. Results indicate that CYFAR coaches draw from a variety of types of coaching and that CYFAR principle investigators (PIs) are generally satisfied with the coaches' methods. Areas in which PIs would like to see changes to the coaching model include amount of technical coaching and amount of help with specific CYFAR funding requirements. We review strategies for incorporating this feedback into practice and discuss implications for CYFAR and for Extension in general. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this article, we describe how a peer-coaching model has been applied to support community-based Extension programming through the Children, Youth, and Families at Risk (CYFAR) initiative. We describe the general approaches to coaching that have been used to help with CYFAR program implementation, evaluation, and sustainability efforts; we discuss strategies coaches use to maintain effective relationships with CYFAR stakeholders; and we review common characteristics of effective coaches. Finally, we discuss implications that coaching strategies might have for Extension programming in general and present future directions for research and practice related to peer coaching. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this article, we describe how the recent movement towards evidence-based programming has impacted Extension. We review how the emphasis on implementing such programs with strict fidelity to an underlying program model may be at odds with Extension's strong history of adapting programming to meet the unique needs of children, youth, families, and communities. We describe several techniques that Extension professionals can use to balance program fidelity and adaptability. We suggest that Extension stakeholders may be best served when we tailor certain aspects of interventions without changing the intervention's core components that are responsible for positive outcomes. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Provides information on a study that determined adolescents' perceptions of social problems that affect their lives and determined the degree to which adolescent and adult reports of social problems diverge. Examination on the extent to which adolescents believe that their views are important in their local community's policymaking process and if they would like to become more involved in local decision-making; Methodology of the study; Results of the study.