The Minnesota Association for Children's Mental Health (MACMH) was founded in 1989 by a group of parents concerned about children's mental health. In 1992, MACMH became incorporated and received its 501-(C)(3) status and has since evolved into a respected statewide education and advocacy organization.
MACMH's programs and activities include:
- MACMH's website, with free downloadable fact sheets: http://www.macmh.org
- Annual Child & Adolescent Mental Health Conference, one of the largest in the country devoted to children's mental health
- Information, referral and support helpline
- MACMH Training Series and publications for parents and professionals
- Fidgety Fairytales, an educational youth-performed musical
- Defenders of Clearview School, a web-based bullying prevention curriculum, also available on DVD
- Family Catalyst Program, educating parents to act effectively as advocates
- Endorsement for Culturally Sensitive, Relationship-focused Practice Promoting Infant Mental Health, a professional endorsement program for 0-3 providers and educators
- Open Up arts-based magazine for ages 5-21
- Infant and Early Childhood Mental Health Policy Briefs
Our Mission
MACMH promotes the positive mental health of all infants, children, adolescents, and their families through education and advocacy (birth to 21).
MACMH accomplishes its mission through anti-stigma public education, family education and skill development, professional development, and family and systems advocacy. Programs empower parents, teachers, and a range of health and social service providers with knowledge and skills to understand, respect, and effectively address the unique needs of children with mental health, emotional and behavioral problems.
MACMH's early childhood division (Minnesota Association for Infant & Early Childhood Mental Health) further defines the organization's goals to promote the healthy social and emotional development of infants, toddlers and very young children via relationship-focused assessment and intervention.
MACMH is the only statewide organization in Minnesota whose sole mission is to advocate for infants, children and adolescents with, or at risk of developing, a mental health disorder.
Why We Need a New Website
MACMH's website is a mess. I should know, I am tasked with updating it. It began many years ago as a simple brochure of what we do, and has evolved into a jumbled mess that should help people, but instead causes confusion and problems. We've recently begun using 123Signup, and FormSite to build online registration forms, but we do not have an online database, so the information collected has to be downloaded and integrated into our Filemaker Pro Database. We have resources listed, but they don't get updated often enough, and finding anything on the list is nearly impossible. We spend so much time trying to improve income by promoting our workshops and conference, that our core programs get buried. The initial structure has been lost, and we have no site map or scheme. We are drowning in an attempt at keeping up to date (we've recently added a Facebook fan page, and GoodSearch, and GiveMN, and Amazon's associate program), and losing all the good standing we once had as an agency that put its key audience first. We are spread thin, and starting with the web, perhaps we could become a cohesive group again. It is getting more difficult to achieve our mission given our loss of funding and need for layoffs, and a new website could help us begin again in the new year. I imagine a world where parents searching for answers can browse through symptoms, and look up ideas, and next steps. A place where educator's can get classroom ideas. A home for advocates to reference and refer people on to the best next step in their journey.
How Our New Site Will Help Make the World Greener
So much of what we do involves paper consumption. We have begun work toward all events having online registration, but we always give the option to print a pdf and mail or fax it in, we are never sure what will work online. We are trying to send more email information, but we still spend a lot of money and use a lot of paper sending out mailings about events. Our end users are more often going to print things they find on our site, instead of coming back to browse them because we provide pdfs, instead of live site information. By moving a lot of the information online to a cohesive presentation, I believe we could cut back significantly on our carbon footprint and printing budget while reaching more children in Minnesota.
When the judges choose which non-profits will be selected to participate in this year's Challenge they will take into account testimonials from beneficiaries, donors, volunteers, board members and other
MACMH is a primary source for information & education regarding children's mental health. It is through their work of building community knowledge and capacity that the children of Minnesota are provided the mental health services they need. Building community awareness regarding children's mental health is accomplished through information distribution through their web site as well as their trainings. A quality web site will increase the knowledge of families and professionals that care for the children of Minnesota. MACMH truel serves in an underserved area!
Rita Garcia; donor of gift-in-kind professional services
MACMH serves a vital function in our community by working to educate parents and professionals about the challenges of child and adolescent mental illness. I have been proud to serve as a member of the organization's board of directors now for 2 years, and am constantly impressed with the passion and dedication of the group's staff and volunteers. I am confident that a new website would be of great help in advancing MACMH's mission.
Joel Oberstar, MD; board member
The importance of MACMH's work, the website being part of it, is that the objective is not to do things for people -- but, rather, to educate, train and support people in what they need to do for themselves and the children they care about. A small and dedicated staff goes a long way in this effort--a good website could multiply their efforts many-fold. I am Vice-President of the Board of Directors and I strongly support this effort to expand MACMH's reach through a revamped website.
Kathy Kosnoff, J.D., Board Member
As a parent and a mental health professional I rely on MACMH and their excellent resources on a regular basis. Their articles and website publications are informative and comprehensive without being tedious and boring. I have referred countless people to MACMH's website and a new and improved version would be helpful for both current and future visitors. MACMH is truly a leader in this field and enhancing the website would help to share vital information, regarding the mental health of children, with parents and professionals in the state, region and nation.
Michele Willert, beneficiary (consumer)
As a mental health professional and a University of Minnesota scientist engaged in children's mental health research, I am grateful for MACMH and recognize the enormous contribution that it makes to families in the State of Minnesota. In an era of ever-increasing complexity in our health care system, families need access to organized information that allows them to investigate and seek interventions for their own health conditions. This is especially important in children's mental health, where the system is particularly fragmented and confusing for consumers. MACMH is a key resource for Minnesota families and should be supported in their endeavors.
Jeff Wozniak, Ph.D., L.P.; Assistant Professor of Psychiatry
MACMH was started by parents with a mission to educate on children's mental health and to and reduce the stigma for those children who have a mental illness. This same vision has been constant over time and has been applied through their yearly conference, educational series, educational programs directed towards teachers and mental health professionals, work with parents and children, and through the numerous creative ways (i.e., Figity Fairy Tales) in which they education children. It is rare to come across such a dedicated group with such an important mission and who are providing such an important resource not only in the state of Minnesota, but extending beyond. I highly support their goals of developing a new web site and I am convinced by their work that it will be highly useful and creative and most importantly, will support their mission.
Tonya White, M.D., (former board member) Associate Professor of Psychiatry, Erasmus University, Rotterdam, Netherlands
While I am a new addition to the MACMH Board of Directors, I have been familiar with the exceptional work of the Association for some time. In my vocational work as a parish pastor I have frequently recommended MACMH's resources to families who face the challenge of caring for children with mental health disorders. In my personal life my spouse have formed our family of twelve children through older child adoption, and we know firsthand the need for readily accessible resources for parents like ourselves. A new website for MACMH will enhance its ability to provide meaningful resources in an efficient, "visitor-friendly" fashion. What a gift that will be for weary, time-challenged parents and professionals who support MACMH's mission, knowingly or unknowingly, as they provide care for and with "special" children.
Rev. Bart A. Fletcher, MDiv, Board Member and Parent of Special Needs Children
MACMH additionally serves a key element to schools locally and nationally. The organization has developed a number of trainings and training materials that continue to be a crucial component to help support school employees in serving students individualized needs. I have been proud to serve as a member of the organization's board of directors now for 2 years and wholehardidly believe that a new improved website could be a phinominal support and resource for anyone that is seeking support or a resource for mental health needs.
Danny Porter M.S.W., L.I.C.S.W. & Board Member
I am in my 8th year as a board member for MACMH. I wholeheartedly support this organization being awarded the web site assistance. This organization has extremely dedicated, hard working staff who embody the mission of MACMH. As a practicing psychotherapist with adults, I routinely recommend my clients to use MACMH, starting with the web site. Clearly, it needs to updated and expanded to be not only user frinedly, but user helpful. This is possible with the technological expertise offered with this award. I am currently the treasurer, and knowing our financial situation, thhis badly needed overhaul will not happen, unless we get this help.
J. Colleen Breen, LICSW, MACMH board member. 8 years.
MACMH is a primary resource for families, educators, mental health professionals and juvenile justice professionals in children’s mental health. Getting the information out to all these groups is challenging. A more developed web site would provide families and professionals from all over the state of Minnesota to gain access to materials, PDF documents, continuing education certificates, links and possible video feeds without the risk of steeling the organizations copy right and assuring people’s privacy is kept around sensitive information. We need a way to meet the needs of greater Minnesota while keeping the cost of the organization down, a new website can address this need. The uses of a web site that is brought up to date are endless. Gaining access for ALL Minnesotan’s is key to the organizations adherence to its mission; a more sophisticated web design can help provide this access.
