- The funding is being provided by the Community Development Block Grant CARES Act Coronavirus Relief program.
Nearly $3.4 million in CARES Act grant funding has been approved to help renovate a foster care facility in Mississippi.
The funding will be utilized to provide more modern care and calming surroundings to the state’s hardest to place foster children at the Methodist Children’s Homes of Mississippi.
Of the $3.375 million in funding, $824,122 will go toward renovating the mental health clinic on campus and $988,873 will go to modernizing the residential facilities.
The grant also includes funding of $988,488 to expand the Healing Arts Program to year-round, and another $574,226 in grant monies will be used to create a trauma-informed Transitional Living Program.
The grant comes from the Community Development Block Grant CARES Act Coronavirus Relief program which aims to help children who were affected by the pandemic.
“These grants demonstrate our commitment to the health and future of Mississippi’s children. We have a responsibility to make sure our most vulnerable young people have access to the support they need to overcome the challenges they face, whether that’s a safe place to heal or the tools to build a future,” said Governor Tate Reeves (R) in a statement on Monday. “These investments empower Methodist Children’s Homes of Mississippi to help more young people overcome adversity and reach their full potential.”
The grants are for renovations only, and not for new construction.
About Methodist Children’s Homes of Mississippi
Gretchen Cook, CEO of Methodist Children’s Homes of Mississippi, said about 100 children come through the doors of the campus annually. Most of their wards are between 14 to 21 and have undergone trauma from abuse, neglect or other experiences. The campus’s residential facilities have about 50 beds, while foster homes provide housing for additional children.
“We deal with teenagers who, for the lack of a better word, who have ‘flunked’ out of other foster home options,” Cook said. “There are some kids who have been through some really rough stuff, for example human trafficking. They have been so traumatized that they are really not in a place to do well in a family setting.”
In response, Methodist Children’s Homes of Mississippi provides these children with a continuum of care that includes mental health services. Children under MCHM’s care may live on campus, or live with foster parents off campus.
“We look for families who want teenagers, because everybody wants the 3-month-old baby and the cute little toddler and the innocent 5-year-old, but not a lot of people want the 240 pound 17-year-old, with a mustache who has anger issue,” Cook described.
Renovations
The grant will provide funding to completely refurbish the six residential facilities on campus to make them more pleasing and emotionally supportive. This work will include the installation of more modern and pleasing lighting.
“Right now, all the facilities have 1970’s overhead lighting,” Cook described. “This is going to give them layers of lighting and more direct light.”
Other improvements will be in the form of newer, more comfortable furnishings, updated flooring, and fresh curtains.
“So, all of that’s going to get redone into what is called trauma-informed design,” Cook explained.
As part of this process, the children will be interviewed with their preferences noted to create surroundings that will benefit the campus residents for years to come.
“It’s going to be heavily youth influenced. Because it’s not about me picking out the colors I like best,” Cook explained. “And then we have male houses and female houses, they may have completely different preferences.”
Essentially, every aspect of the residential areas will get a refresh.
“And I know they’re going to be super excited because they’re all going to get new bedroom furniture down to the linens and the shower curtains,” Cook added.
The grant will also renovate the facility’s mental health clinic, which offers a therapist, peer support and other mental health treatment options.
Renovations in this facility will feature better lighting, movable furnishings to accommodate different therapy session styles, and updates to the outdoor courtyard to make it therapeutic. Cook said these renovations will capitalize on big spaces and windows and include a sensory room.
Mental health services provided at MCHM help the children overcome the behavior issues that are the typical result of the trauma they have sustained.
“The way they’re behaving is a logical outcome of what they’ve been through, so if we can help them unravel what they’ve been through and moderate their behaviors and become productive citizens, we’ve done a great thing,” Cook explained. “But none of these kids are here through any fault of their own and they all deserve a chance. No one’s past should ever dictate their future.”
Art, Transitional Living Program
Creation of the year-long Healing Arts Program will occur through renovations to the existing classrooms in the gym on campus.
“The Healing Arts Program is not new, we’ve been running it as a summer camp,” Cook elaborated. “It’s gotten such positive results that it makes sense to have it year round with staff.”
This program will utilize various forms of art, including movement, music and physical art, which helps children who have “shut down” express themselves. Cook said this process will include bringing in an art therapist and a music therapist to teach the staff how to perpetuate those programs.
To create the Transitional Living Program, another existing building on campus will be renovated to create a residential facility that can house about five foster children who are close to aging out. This program allow those teens approaching adulthood learn about the compromises and division of responsibilities involved in living with roommates.
Cook said not many 18-year-olds are able to cover the expenses involved in living away from home, so learning to negotiate for themselves and cooperate with others are skills for success.
“Because economically, not many of us can leave home at 18 and go rent an apartment on our own,” Cook said. “You’re most likely to be in a roommate situation at that age.”
Timeline for Work
MCHM has until the end of September 2027 to spend all of the grant funding.
“That’s a daunting task, but it’s going to be spent in big chunks because when we order furniture, we’re going to order it for the entire campus,” Cook said.
