NJAMHAA 75th Anniversary

Commemorative Journal 53 “ This was a great opportunity. I’m grateful for it. I was recently promoted and I’mmanaging more staff than before. I learned how to speak to my employees so they understand. I also learned how to deal with difficult employees, to empathize and show that I care. These improved skills enabled me to achieve goals earlier than I had planned. ” Maria Martinez 2024-2025 Leadership Academy Mentee Senior Office Manager, CarePlus NJ, Inc. “ The mentorship and coaching I received helped me navigate one of the biggest professional transitions of my life: moving from an interimCEO role to a permanent one. My mentor and coach helped me learn what it truly means to lead in this role. They guided me in how to grow into it, how to succeed in it, and how to show up for my organization in a whole new way. That’s not a small thing, and I truly believe the support I received through this programmade a real difference. ” Jennifer Hughes, LCSW 2025-2026 Leadership Academy Mentee, Chief Executive Officer, NAMI NJ In FY2010, NJMHI did business as the National Resource Center for Hispanic Mental Health (NRCHMH) and partnered with the United States Department of Health and Human Services Office of Minority Health (OMH) to spearhead a national initiative, Movilizandonos por Nuestro Futuro: Strategic Development of a Mental Health Workforce for Latinos . This project resulted in the publication of a nationally disseminated Consensus Statements and Recommendations Report , which garnered positive response and attention from media outlets, elected and appointed officials, and new potential funding partners. NJMHI and OMH leaders were invited to speak at several national conferences and interviewed for national trade publications. The NRCHMH also spearheaded efforts to establish and operationalize a national Alliance for Latino Behavioral Health Workforce Development aimed at ensuring the successful implementation of the recommendations contained in the documents cited above. In FY2012, NJMHI continued implementing an array of activities on its multi-year projects, Partners for Culturally Competent Behavioral Health Service Delivery to Hispanics . This initiative aimed to increase availability of, access to and provision of quality and culturally and linguistically competent mental health services for Hispanics, especially those with limited English proficiency, in three New Jersey counties. As the behavioral healthcare workforce had been declining for many years and agency leaders have been finding it more difficult to attract and retain qualified staff, NJMHI launched the Leadership Academy for Behavioral Healthcare Professionals in October 2022. This cost-effective, year- long program gives aspiring behavioral healthcare leaders opportunities to build the skills they need to advance in their careers and succeed in future leadership positions.