GREENFIELD — Schools across Franklin County and the North Quabbin region will be increasing engagement in restorative practices thanks to a $1.5 million grant secured as part of the Community Health Improvement Plan.
At Thursday afternoon’s Community Health Improvement Plan (CHIP) progress update, Franklin Regional Council of Governments shared that CHIP partners are making progress on their goals of expanding access to driving and restorative practices in schools.
“The Community Health Improvement Plan Network is two things — it is a network of people … people who work for hospitals, people who work for anti-poverty agencies, people who work in schools,” CHIP Project Coordinator Jen Audley said. “We also have a plan on health improvement, and what happens is we work together as a network to identify priority health issues.”
The plan identified 13 priority areas for FRCOG and its partners to work on through 2028.
Restorative practices
Restorative practices is an umbrella term used to refer to restorative justice, along with proactive strategies to build relationships, according to Kit Sabo, director of the restorative practices program at the Collaborative Resolutions Group. Implementation can take on different forms, from restorative circles where students are brought together to “have open communication to build relationships and foster trust,” such as those being held in Greenfield’s public schools, to students and teachers coming together to build restorative practice strategic plans, such as the one developed in the Gill-Montague Regional School District.
“There are some incredible things happening,” Sabo said.
To support the work being done at schools across the region, Greenfield’s public schools and FRCOG applied for and were awarded a $1.5 million grant from the Public School Districts’ Opioid Recovery Trust.
Leigh-Ellen Figueroa, health and prevention programs coordinator with FRCOG, said the funding came from a nationwide opioid settlement, with Greenfield as the lead applicant. They were one of 40 school districts nationwide to be selected and one of only three in Massachusetts.
The funding will “create a massive scope for improving and expanding mental health services, improving community partnerships as well as implementing restorative practices,” Figueroa said.
The funds were disbursed to Greenfield’s public schools last week, and will be further split and sent to the other school districts in the region in the coming weeks. Figueroa said some schools already had restorative practices and other health-related initiatives in place that will be supported by the grant, while other schools will be using the funds to launch new programs, such as hiring a restorative practices coordinator and mental health clinicians over the next three years.
Driving access
The meeting also shared the results of two pilot programs that were launched last year to expand access to driving.
“We might not like fossil fuel. We might wish that people could be driving less, but if you live here in Franklin County and the North Quabbin, you really have to drive,” Audley said. “If you don’t have a driver’s license and you don’t have a reliable vehicle, you are really hampered from being able to have a healthy life and achieve your goals.”
Audley said FRCOG came up with a slew of ways to help address driving accessibility, and created two programs: a driver’s permit study group for adults and subsidized driver’s education for low-income families.
A study group was hosted by the Community Action Pioneer Valley Family Center last spring. Over six sessions, they saw 12 participants ages 21 to 62 who were unable to get a permit and license as a teenager for a variety of reasons, including finances, family support and test anxiety. Bringing them together to study with Community Action staff members helped build connections with other adults from Athol to Shelburne Falls and share strategies for success.
“The junior operator’s license is focused on 16- and 17-year-olds. Everything is already making an adult feel like they missed the boat, so to be able to come to the clinic and get some strategies was really a valuable asset,” said Community Action’s Kia Burton-King. “It was great to have folks in the room and just be able to promote that social connection. I loved the nights they were there because you just heard all the laughter.”
But when Community Action staff picked them up, brought them to the center and helped them study, they found success. Of the 10 study group participants who then took the driver’s permit test, nine passed.
Another program FRCOG launched was a subsidized driver’s education program with JaDuke Driving School. Juniper Holmes, director of the driving school, said driver’s ed normally costs $625, often making it cost-prohibitive for lower-income families. With help from FRCOG and MassHire, they were able to cover $500 of that $625 fee for 22 students, and allowed families to set up payment plans for the remaining costs.
As they move forward, Audley said FRCOG hopes to find funding to continue these programs and launch other ones. The organization is working with the Mary Lyon Foundation and Mohawk Trail Regional School in Buckland to get a teacher certified to teach driver’s ed at the school.
Audley said FRCOG’s next CHIP update will be scheduled for early next year. Anyone seeking more information can visit frcog.org/project/community-health-improvement-plan-network-chip.
