EVENTS AND TRAININGS

SUPPORTIVE HOUSING TRAININGS

Housing Solutions: ending long-term homelessness and creating permanent supportive housing for those living with serious mental illnesses.

Three additional trainings are being planned for September 2008. We will keep you posted!

Supportive Housing Information Flyer

Registration form - Hartford

Registration form - Middletown

 

ESSENTIALS OF LEGISLATIVE ADVOCACY

This FREE annual training is held in October or November and led by Attorney Jan VanTassel and former State Representative, and DMHAS legislative Liaison, Doreen DelBianco.  Discussed are the “essentials” of the legislative process and how to influence elected officials.  The 2 day class is held in a hearing room at the Legislative Office Building (LOB) in Hartford.  A tour of the Legislative Office Building (LOB) and Capitol is included along with lunch. 

DATES FOR THIS YEAR'S ESSENTIALS TRAINING: THURSDAY, NOVEMBER 13, AND NOVEMBER 20, 2008.

These are the two basic goals of this training:

1) To Make You Comfortable with the People and the Process
You do not need to be an expert on politics, the legislative process or the budget. YOU ARE ALREADY AN EXPERT based on your experience: person in recovery, family member, friend or provider.

2) To Help You Figure Out How You Can Help
Each of us has different skills, assets or talents to contribute to advocacy -- speaking, writing, calling, supporting, or drawing. They are all part of a successful advocacy campaign.

Keep the Promise offers a free two day Legislative Advocacy training at the Legislative Office Building each year in October and December.

However, upon request, these trainings are available to 15 or more persons in a condensed version.

Please contact Cheri Bragg, Coordinator, if you are interested in holding a training at your office or clubhouse at 860-882-0236 or 1-800-215-3021

ESSENTIALS OF LEGISLATIVE LEADERSHIP TRAINING

This FREE annual training, usually held each December, is for experienced advocates interested in knowing more details about the legislative process and playing a lead role in KTP advocacy at the LOB or on a local level.  This 2 day class is held in a hearing room at the LOB in Hartford.  Lunch is provided.

Keep the Promise offers both the Essential of Legislative Advocacy and the Essential of Legislative Leadership trainings for FREE at the Legislative Office Building each year in October/November and December respectively. However, upon request, these trainings are available to 15 or more persons in a condensed version.

Please contact Cheri Bragg, Coordinator, if you are interested in holding a training at your office, clubhouse, or other local venue at 860-882-0236 or 1-800-215-3021.

DATES FOR THIS YEAR'S LEADERSHIP TRAINING: WEDNESDAY, DECEMBER 3, and DECEMBER 10, 2008.

GOLDEN PEN MEDIA TRAINING

“The pen is mightier than the sword.”
Edward George Bulwer-Lytton

FOCUS THE MEDIA ON MENTAL HEALTH SERVICES!!!

Tired of hearing just the politicians? Join the dialogue by publishing letters and articles in local and statewide newspapers. Or take part in interviews on the radio or TV. Educate Connecticut on the importance of mental health services to you and them.

HOW IT WORKS:

Anyone can participate. The article/letter/interview must be mental health related and be published or recorded between October 1, 2007 and August 1, 2008. Awards will be given to the organizations and individuals who focus media attention on mental health issues in any way.

Get a picture and story printed about your group’s work or advocacy
Get interviewed on the radio/TV
Write a letter to the editor and get it published
Hold an event and get media coverage (a news article)
Send your published article/letter or information about your interview/media event to us at the address below or fax to 860-882-0240.

An added bonus – published articles will be part of the Coalition’s weekly lit drop during the legislative session, which means every state representative and senator will receive a copy of your work. IF YOU DON’T DO IT, WHO WILL????

CANDIDATE FORUMS

Candidate Forum Training: Keep the Focus on Mental Health Issues

Candidate Forum Contest Entrance Form

Candidate Forum Stipend Flyer

Examples of how to format an event:

Sample 1

1) Ask all candidates to attend a non-partisan forum, specifically on a mental health issues. Send Candidates information on the issue prior to the event.
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2) Present a brief overview of the issues at the forum preferably by people who are directly affected by the issues. These individuals should sit with the candidates.

3) Have an open discussion where candidates and the audience can ask questions and talk with each other.

4) Close by asking the candidates to commit to supporting initiatives.

Sample 2

1) Ask all candidates in your district to attend a non-partisan forum.

2) Allow each candidate 3 minutes (this can vary) to make opening comments.

3) Take questions from the audience that the moderator would ask each candidate to respond to. (It is preferable to have questions collected on cards before the forum begins and screened for content before given to the moderator. It also helps eliminate speeches rather than questions.)

In Sample 2 you want ensure that all candidates and the audience understand the theme of the forum is on mental health issues. Or make sure that members of the audience ask specific questions on mental health issues.

Sample 3

1) Ask all candidates in your district to attend a non-partisan forum.

2) Have a room set up with tables where the individual candidates can sit.

3) The audience can then rotate to the different tables and discuss mental health issues with the candidates.

4) It is preferable to have time to brief the audience on issues either through discussion or fact sheets.

This method of forum is more informal and does not look necessarily for commitment by the candidate. But it does allow for individuals to size up the candidate on a more personal level.

LEGISLATIVE BREAKFASTS

Tips on Hosting a Legislative Breakfast:

In general, a legislative breakfast or event should:

Be no more than 1 hour.

Be in the legislators’ home area BEFORE the session starts if possible – otherwise you may want to consider holding an evening meeting with simple hors d’oeuvres or dessert for example – whenever people can attend.

Be hosted at the L.O.B. AFTER the session starts (it is hard for them to make something in their home towns once the session starts).

Be hosted in an easily accessibly area such as a local social club/clubhouse, a Regional Mental Health Board room, or a NAMI Affiliate meeting place.

Include invitations to all the Senators and Representatives in several surrounding towns that your organization or group serves (if you invite 12 people, commonly some will not be able to attend).

Invite legislators and community stakeholders 3-4 weeks in advance of the event with a deadline for the RSVP’s.
Be sure to follow-up with friendly phone calls to legislators and community members you haven’t heard from approximately 1 week before the event.

Serve simple breakfast items such as coffee, tea, juice, bagels, muffins, or pastries.

Be a COLLABORATIVE EFFORT between an agency program, such as a clubhouse, a local NAMI affiliate, the Regional Mental Health Board, etc.

Be creative! (Displaying clubhouse members’ art, for example, can be a great way to initiate conversation).

Focus on a couple of key issues (such as funding Supportive Housing and specific Community Services) you know will be important in the upcoming Legislative Session.

Be less formal with a small group (everyone might have time to go around and briefly introduce themselves and very briefly state their issues with the mental health system such as supportive housing needs or successes). Be more structured for a larger group (have a couple key people highlight 2 or 3 important issues for your group).

Have an “ask” – a statement regarding your hope for their specific support or legislation. For example, you could ask the legislators to support funding 650 new units of Supportive Housing.

Allow time for the legislator(s) to respond to the issues that have been outlined for them.

Take pictures! Get your event published in a local newspaper! You can include photos and/or an article.

Always thank your legislators for attending. Send them a thank you note and reinforce your issues and/or “asks”.

KTP can lend support by answering questions, providing collaborative leads such as local NAMI affiliates & Regional Board contacts, providing fact sheets (Supportive Housing, Alternatives to Incarceration, Young Adult Services, Raising the Income Limit for Medicaid, etc.) and the KTP legislative priorities tri-fold.

Please call KTP at (860) 882-0236; (800) 215-3021 or email us at keepthepromise@namict.org with any questions or for support. Schedule breakfasts and meetings with your legislators TODAY! These meetings are an important and effective way to let your legislators know how they can affect change.

MONTHLY MEETINGS

Keep the Promise Coalition holds regular monthly meeting on the third Wednesday of each month from 10 am to 12 pm at Connecticut Valley Hospital, Page Hall, Room 217, Middletown, CT 06457. Lunch is served. Please RSVP to Cheri or Maura at 860-882-0236 or 1-800-215-3021