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(Courtesy photo)

After the training, everyone returned to their home communities energized, dedicated and prepared to work closely with their local teen initiatives to offer YMHFA trainings for a variety of audiences. In addition, I have the privilege of facilitating that group, which has become a community of practice and will gather virtually to learn with and support each other as we offer this course and as we continue to identify other opportunities for helping the teens in our communities.

We are so fortunate to be in a community that cares about our young people and understands that one of the most effective ways of helping our young people is to ensure that our professionals are equipped with the tools necessary to help our teens thrive. Last week, in collaboration with Gateways, 30 educators from day schools, synagogues and local community organizations became certified. As we look toward 2020, and as the world around our teens becomes possibly even more scary and unpredictable, we are committed to offering more opportunities for certification so that the Jewish community can do our part in providing our teens with the support they need to thrive.

Source: “Greater Boston Makes Youth Mental Health a Priority,” Margie Bogdanow, JewishBoston Teens, December 13, 2019

Margie Bogdanow, LICSW, is an educator, coach and consultant in the Greater Boston area. Her professional work focuses on impacting adults to make a difference in the lives of young people. Among other projects, she currently serves as a senior consultant at CJP, holding a leadership role in the Jewish Teen Education and Engagement Initiative, a partnership between CJP and Jim Joseph Foundation. In addition, she is the Youth Mental Health First Aid Community of Practice coordinator for the Teen Education and Engagement Funder Collaborative. She is on the Parenting Through a Jewish Lens faculty at Hebrew College and was a co-creator of the Grandparenting Through A Jewish Lens and Parenting Teens Through a Jewish Lens curricula. Previously, she served as co-founder and executive director of Parenting Resource Associates in Lexington, associate director of the Early Childhood Institute at Hebrew College and has held a variety of other professional and volunteer positions in the community. She has been involved in the leadership at Temple Isaiah in Lexington and served as president for two years. She is committed to finding ways to make Judaism meaningful and accessible to all members of the community.