Self, Vision, Community · 2024
SVC workshop outcomes
Across 3 sites and 65 participants, agreement with the survey statements rose from 43% before the sessions to 87% after, on average. The biggest jump: “I know the difference between mental health and mental illness” in Roxbury, from 23% to 95%.
Participants served
65
3 sites · Haitian newcomer families
Surveys collected
49
Quincy gives no total
Workshop hours delivered
29
Across every session at every site
Agreement after the workshop
87%
From 43% before · +44 points
Before and after, statement by statement
Participants answered each statement in Haitian Creole before and after the session. Counts are read from the bar charts in each SaveSouls report.
Share who agree
Hollow is before, filled is after. Choose a statement to see every answer.
Day 1 · Mental health
Day 2 · Workforce and community
Every answer
“I know the difference between mental health and mental illness.”
“Mental health is just as important as physical health.”
“I know how to access services for mental health.”
“I have a self-care plan for my mental, physical, and spiritual health.”
“This workshop is beneficial to my overall well-being.”
“I know the jobs I can do based on my existing skills.”
“I know how to navigate the workforce in the US.”
“I have a professional plan to help me grow in my community.”
“I know how to use the resources in my community independently.”
Dedham
Quincy
Roxbury
Dedham
Quincy
Roxbury
Dedham
Quincy
Roxbury
Dedham
Quincy
Roxbury
Dedham
Quincy
Roxbury
Quincy
Roxbury
Quincy
Roxbury
Quincy
Quincy
This site's report has no results for this statement.
- Dedham: Only Day 1 (mental health) surveys are included: the final round of surveys was missed while incentives were handed out.
- Quincy: The report gives no survey total. Some Day 2 statements show more answers than the 10 participants; the counts are shown as charted in the report.
- Roxbury: Day 2 combined professional development and community integration in one survey.
- Roxbury: The before-survey chart for statement 5 and the charts for statements 8 and 9 are missing from the report.
The sites
| Site | Dates | Prepared for | Days | Hours | Participants | Surveys |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 1 – June 5, 2024 | Haitian Mental Health Network at William James College | 6 | 15 | 30 | 28 | |
| June 25 – 26, 2024 | Haitian Mental Health Network at William James College | 2 | 6 | 10 | — | |
| April 27 – 28, 2024 | Children’s Services of Roxbury | 2 | 8 | 25 | 21 |
What the team learned
What worked
Delivered in Creole
Presentation and workbooks in Creole made it a safe space to share personal stories.
Dedham
Tangible care plans
Most participants left with concrete plans to care for themselves and their families, and knew how to reach mental health services.
Dedham
Couples learning together
Husbands and wives shared the changes they’ll make for a healthier home.
Quincy
Housing hesitation addressed
Once the process was explained, families became receptive to transitional housing resources.
Quincy
Onsite childcare
Bilingual, EEC-certified teachers let parents attend who couldn’t before.
Roxbury
Culturally grounded
Haitian music, Haitian food and Creole delivery: participants felt “alèz” (at ease).
Roxbury
Therapy referrals
Participants wanting therapy were referred, with sponsorship for the first 6 sessions.
Roxbury
Challenges
Mental vs physical health
Some participants still believed one kind of health matters more than the other.
Dedham
Food for young children
Parents struggled to find suitable food for young children at the hotel.
Dedham
ESL levels mismatched
Existing ESL classes mix very different English levels.
Dedham
Fear of social services
Lively discussion of child discipline, and fear of social services and school programs.
Dedham
Final surveys missed
The last round of surveys was missed while incentives were handed out.
Dedham
Shortened series
Delivered in 2 days / 6 hours instead of 3 days / 15 hours; the community integration session was dropped.
Quincy
Little advance notice
Participants didn’t know about the workshop in advance; some joined only on day 2.
Quincy
Gift card confusion
One gift card per family, even when both parents attended.
Quincy
Declining housing support
Families declined housing services out of fear of eviction to homelessness.
Quincy
Late start on day 1
Transport and food-delivery delays pushed the start back an hour.
Roxbury
Childcare overflow
Planned for 12 children; about 25 came, over 10 of them older than 5.
Roxbury
Payment process
A missed disbursement deadline and an unclear invoice/deposit chain delayed preparation.
Roxbury
Recommendations
Parenting group
6–12 sessions on healthy parenting, attachment, child development, nutrition and child mental health (e.g. Circle of Security).
Dedham
Family conflict & local laws
Domestic violence prevention and ongoing conflict-resolution education.
Dedham
Housing forum
A monthly “next steps” forum on public housing programs.
Dedham
ESL screening
Screen English level so each person gets ESL support at the right level.
Dedham
Invite spouses
Encourage spouses to attend together so family dynamics are addressed.
Dedham
Registration with notice
Register early so families can plan around childcare and work.
Quincy
Childcare options
A childcare incentive, or let parents attend with their children.
Quincy
Creole resources workshop
A community-integration and housing-resources workshop in Creole at shelter sites.
Quincy
Family support groups
Connect families to gender-based counseling or support groups.
Quincy
Site–provider coordination
Shelter admin and workshop providers align on current site challenges.
Quincy
Memorandum of Agreement
Set out service expectations and deliverables with Children’s Services of Roxbury.
Roxbury
Needs assessment
Complete it at least 3 weeks before the workshop.
Roxbury
Workforce follow-up
A 15-minute follow-up with each participant; short-term workforce services from Canton.
Roxbury
In participants’ words
“I feel satisfied with the training because it taught me a lot. Especially it showed me how to manage my mental and physical health and taught me how to prevent the symptoms of mental illness. Before this workshop, I couldn’t tell the difference between mental illness and mental health.”
“I had the chance to express myself and learn the difference between mental illness and mental health and how the symptoms can impact your health. I felt safe to talk. Thank you for this program.”
“When I walked into this workshop today, I thought it was a waste of time. I did not know how important this information would be. When I started to pay attention to the program I realized this information can help me solve a lot of problems I have. I am thankful for this great workshop and it will help a lot of people.”
“I did not know how to take care of myself, but because of this workshop, now I know how to do that.”
“I want to congratulate the organization Savesouls for teaching us several things that are relevant to our lives. I feel very happy and satisfied with the knowledge I gained on how to manage my emotion and my stress.”
“I’m happy because the workshop helps me with my mental health. I feel like I should be here every day because the training helps me.”
“This workshop taught me a lot of things, especially how to realize my dream.”
“This work is meaningful because it helps me and helps other people in the community as well. Continue the work.”
“We’d like to thank you for the information in this workshop. It will be useful to us for the rest of our lives.”
“What I think is this workshop is a great idea. I like the way you took the time to explain to us how to manage ourselves and how to live in our environment.”
“For me this workshop is really great. It will help us progress in society.”
“I think this workshop is a good activity for us, because it gave me the confidence to speak in public about what I do, who I am, and what I love. I learned about mental health and mental illness. This workshop should keep helping people, because I learned so much. Thank you again.”
“I learned how to tell apart the three kinds of health I can manage, and I understand that all three matter equally. It motivates me to take better care of my health and helps me find better ways to live in good health: physical, mental, and spiritual.”
“Today I feel really good and happy, because I can tell the difference between mental health and mental illness. This workshop truly helped us let out what we felt inside and free everything we were hiding that was ravaging us. I would love for this workshop to keep helping those in need, for a better future for our mental health.”
“I think this is a good opportunity that helps us grow and move forward in life. It taught me to take care of myself, especially spiritually. I always thought spiritual meant praying every day and going to church; now I’ve learned that having fun helps me spiritually too.”
“Today’s workshop helped me a lot, because now I can tell the difference between mental health and mental illness, when before I couldn’t. It helped me discover many other things too, like how to manage myself. Thank you so much for this session. I hope you keep going.”
“I learned how to find resources near home, how to write a CV, how to present myself in an interview, and how to answer questions and sell myself.”
Read each site's report
Every site has its own page with its survey results, findings, and the full report as written by the SaveSouls team.
Program report · June 2024
Dedham
May 1 – June 5, 2024 · 30 participants
Prepared for Haitian Mental Health Network at William James College.
Read the Dedham report: Self, Vision, Community workshop series: Dedham
Program report · July 2024
Quincy
June 25 – 26, 2024 · 10 participants
Prepared for Haitian Mental Health Network at William James College.
Read the Quincy report: Self, Vision, Community workshop series: Quincy
Program report · May 2024
Roxbury
April 27 – 28, 2024 · 25 participants
Prepared for Children’s Services of Roxbury.
Read the Roxbury report: Self, Vision, Community workshop series: Children’s Services of Roxbury