Philadelphia Refugee Mental Health Collaborative BuildaBridge International Report of Year 4
BuildaBridge Year 4 Report: The Philadelphia Refugee Mental Health Collaborative BuildaBridge International Mission - To engage creative people and the transformative power of art making to bring hope and healing to children, families, and communities in the contexts of crisis and poverty. Vision - a world where all children are resilient, experience self-efficacy, and have a vision for their future. BuildaBridge dedicates its resources to building the capacity of creative adults and local communities to fulfill this vision. Goals Bring hope & healing to children and families living in contexts of crisis and poverty Increase resilience, the experience self‐efficacy Facilitate in each child a clear vision for their future Philadelphia Refugee Mental Health Collaborative Mission – To connect newly arrived refugees to culturally and linguistically appropriate mental health care, including support groups, therapy, and community-building arts and education projects Vision – All refugees have access to quality mental health supports, including a network of trained professionals committed to serving refugee populations, appropriate translation services and treatment centers who access these services and recognition of alternative treatment modules and funding for them. Goals – Building ethnic community capacity to recognize and address behavioral health needs in their communities Development of culturally appropriate supportive groups for new arrivals to deal with resettlement and forced migration stresses in non-traditional settings Increasing understanding of the adaptive strategies of new refugee populations Narrative Summary During Year 4 of the Philadelphia Refugee Mental Health Collaborative (PRMHC), BuildaBridge continued to provide high-quality, culturally specific art therapy and therapeutic art-making groups in the community context to Bhutanese, Burmese Chin and Burmese Karen refugee populations living in South Philadelphia BuildaBridge also provided groups to Congolese refugee children and youth, art therapy interventions to Bhutanese adults in response to the Nepali earthquakes and specialized workshops for Iraqi women and children. The BuildaBridge ClassroomSM, a trauma-informed, hope-infused, client-centered replicable model that includes a restorative justice approach for working with youth served as the foundation of the art therapy groups. Built onto that foundation, the groups accomplished two goals: 1) Assisted refugee children in working towards mental health goals set by art therapists based on children’s identified behavioral problems and 2) Taught children key life lessons through art-making in one or more of the BuildaBridge ClassroomSM Model outcome areas (Artistic, Social, Academic & Character Development). For the specialized workshops and interventions, refugee communities expressed desires to engage in artmaking experiences, the goals of which were developed by participants. Woven throughout each group, therapists used art and art-making as a metaphor for additional life skills and lessons. It is these elements that assisted refugees in identifying adjustment strategies based on the strengths of their communities in promoting success, strength, recovery and resiliency in a new culture. BuildaBridge International – 205 W. Tulpehocken Street, Philadelphia, PA 19144 Phone: 215-842-0428 www.buildabridge.org
Philadelphia Refugee Mental Health Collaborative BuildaBridge International Report of Year 4 BuildaBridge Personnel Creative Arts Therapists Teaching Artists and Assistants Total number of Artists
Year 1 5 5
Year 2 6 3
Year 3 5 2
Year 4 8 6
10
9
7
14
● Nine artists have been involved for 3 or more years ● Five artists involved for all 4 years
Year 4 Outputs Bhutanese Children Bhutanese Adults Burmese Chin & Karen Children Burmese Chin & Karen Adults Congolese Iraqi Totals
Attendance 23 22 72 2 16 20 155
Groups provided 11 4 16 8 1 40
Outcomes Bhutanese, Burmese Chin & Karen and Congolese Art therapists and therapeutic artists identified Year 4 outcomes for their respective groups based on the previous year’s assessments and observable needs identified within the first two groups of each term. Observed and identified needs of the Bhutanese group: 1. Limited expression of original thoughts and ideas. 2. Limited expression of and/or under developed modulation of affect resulting in a limited expression of emotion or sharp under-controlled spikes in emotion. 3. Under developed modulation of movement efforts resulting in lack of impulse control. 4. Under developed sense of body awareness, particularly in regards to sense of self in space and in relation to other Observed and identified needs of the Burmese group: 1. Limited sense of self individually and within their community 2. Limited abilities to express emotion verbally 3. Hesitancy to ask for help and comfort from peers, parents and community members
BuildaBridge International – 205 W. Tulpehocken Street, Philadelphia, PA 19144 Phone: 215-842-0428 www.buildabridge.org
Philadelphia Refugee Mental Health Collaborative BuildaBridge International Report of Year 4 Highlights of these outcomes and participants’ accomplishments included: Metaphors Just as we have the ability to shape our dances and mold our clay, we are able to influence, shape, and mold what we envision for our future. When making a mosaic mural, many people contribute in small ways to make something big, something that they could not have made by themselves. This is just like in life, when we have to work together with our friends and family to achieve things that we could not have done on our own. Academic Skills Children exhibited increased knowledge and understanding of big cat characteristics such as habitat, endangered, and sanctuary in addition to new vocabulary including clay, choreograph, rolling pin, imprint, mosaic, texture and glaze. Social Children exhibited understanding and ability to engage in the following social skills: collaboration, turn-taking, respect, personal space, sharing space, sharing materials, sharing ideas, listening to and welcoming others. Spiritual/Character Development Children exhibited increased bonding behaviors as evidenced by the sharing of original art and materials, speaking a blessing to their peers and working with others to create group artwork. Artistic Children learned a variety of movement, music and visual art techniques including: creating sculptures out of paper and clay; playing percussion instruments to open the group; molding stamps out of clay and stamping with ink; using movement to express feelings and connections to one another; and painting.
Art groups for Congolese refugee populations During the summer of 2014, BuildaBridge provided 11 Congolese children and youth with five art-making workshops that explored the concepts of one’s identity and role in relation to community. Artists used visual art techniques of creating mandalas in addition to an altered book reflecting oneself and their journey. Between January and February, BuildaBridge provided an additional three workshops to a total of 16 participants continuing this theme using music and dance.
BuildaBridge International – 205 W. Tulpehocken Street, Philadelphia, PA 19144 Phone: 215-842-0428 www.buildabridge.org
Philadelphia Refugee Mental Health Collaborative BuildaBridge International Report of Year 4 Bhutanese Respond to Earthquakes in Nepal On April 25, 2015, a 7.8 magnitude earthquake struck Nepal. Less than two weeks later on May 12, 2015, a second strong aftershock struck the region, destroying even more villages, households and monuments. A group of Bhutanese refugee adults, many of whom spent up to twenty years living in refugee camps in Nepal, expressed a desire to take action. While most were unable to travel to help or contribute funds, the group wanted to still do something impactful towards the rebuilding and recovery. Four BuildaBridge artists and art therapists over four workshops assisted the group in creating artwork that reflected the group's responses to three prompts: Nepal as you remember it (stories and memories); Nepal today (concerned, imagined struggles Nepalis are currently facing); and Nepal in the future (hopes, and prayers for the rebuilding). Prayer flags attached to bamboo poles, reminiscent of the flags found on many bridges in Nepal, adorn the poles in between the pieces of artwork. Workshop with Iraqi mothers and children In June 2015, BuildaBridge piloted a workshop with 20 Iraqi mothers and children. The group regularly meets on Fridays to discuss life skills, and topics of home, children, school and employment. They requested art activities to further enhance their conversations and connections. Two artists, one a certified art therapist and drumming instructor and the other a teaching artist, led a drum circle and an art-making experience which encouraged participants to express their individual creativity. At the request of the group, BuildaBridge is planning future programming involving visual storytelling, cross cultural poetry studies and writing. Personal Story Sandya Sandya started attending BuildaBridge groups in 2012 when she was only 5 years old. She would regularly rush to the front of the line, whether entering or exiting the room, or to get art supplies. She would also compete for the attention of staff members, needing validation for all that she had done. In 2014, however, there was a shift away from her earlier frustrations after having attended BuildaBridge groups for the past two years. When she had difficulties getting art supplies, she displayed patience and understanding. She also displayed more impulse control when it came to rushing in and out of lines as well as in the circle. Sandaya also began drawing connections between herself and the lessons without prompting from staff. In April 2015, Sandya attended a Bhutanese community event where a mural that her grandparents created was on display. The mural illustrated the story of her ancestors from Bhutan to Nepal to Philadelphia and the hardships they endured along the way. Her grandparents and other elders took turns telling their stories. Sandya, then 7 ½ years old, exhibited great listening skills and paid attention the entire time. After the stories, she offered help to others in distributing the beverages to her peers and the group. It was then BuildaBridge staff realized that her participation in BuildaBridge groups over the past three years had helped Sandya mature into a young girl eager to support and give back to her community.
BuildaBridge International – 205 W. Tulpehocken Street, Philadelphia, PA 19144 Phone: 215-842-0428 www.buildabridge.org
Philadelphia Refugee Mental Health Collaborative BuildaBridge International Report of Year 4 Links Project Website http://buildabridgerefugeeproject.blogspot.com/ PRMHC Bhutanese Group http://vimeo.com/65112790 PRMHC Nepal Art Intervention Workshop Video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FdPDd23O2Mw PRMHC website www.culturalcommunities.org
BuildaBridge International – 205 W. Tulpehocken Street, Philadelphia, PA 19144 Phone: 215-842-0428 www.buildabridge.org