Last Updated: 9-04-2007

The West Virginia Leadership Academy
is a consumer-operated project of WVMHCA.

Who We Are:

The WV Leadership Academy is a self-help program successfully adapted and implemented by the West Virginia Mental Health Consumers' Association (WVMHCA).

Program Overview:

The Leadership Academy is an exemplary grassroots program, nationally recognized for its empowering activities in community organizing and action planning for adults with psychiatric disabilities and their families. The Leadership Academy provides a foundation for enhancing consumer skills for effective speaking and civic advocacy and is an evidence-based program with significant outcomes.

The training uses overheads and participant manuals to teach nineteen practical lessons about the etiquette of consumer involvement, identification of issues, and advocacy organizations. This excellent skill-building curriculum is followed up with collaborative projects that foster networking and continued learning.

There is a beginning and advanced train-the-trainers seminar at which Leadership Academy graduates who have demonstrated interest and aptitude are taught to become trainers at future Academies. Nearly all trainers at West Virginia Academies are non-professional LA graduates.

The annual Leadership Academy Conference hosts workshops on relevant topics presented by graduates of the program as well as expert guests. Held each fall, the conference allows graduates to reconnect with individuals they met through LA and meet others to exchange ideas, strategies, and insights.
 
The LA project includes collaboration and referrals from WRAP and Leadership Academy facilitators, drop-in centers, self-help groups, peer groups, the West Virginia Chapter of the National Alliance for the Mentally Ill (NAMI), behavioral health centers, and other related groups across the state.

LA Trainers:

Kathy Muscari

Director: WVMHCA's Technical Assistance Center

Kathy Muscari is the Director of WVMHCA’s Technical Assistance Center which oversees implementation of self-help education and training programs such as the Leadership Academy.  She has facilitated Leadership Academy workshops and presentations for several years as well as authored articles on leadership and empowerment.   Ms. Muscari is a Leadership Academy graduate and appreciates the importance of collective self-determination. 

Kelly Lane

Leadership Academy Coordinator - State/National Trainer

I am the Leadership Academy Coordinator for West Virginia Mental Health Consumers’ Association Technical Assistance Center.   I graduated from the Leadership Academy in 2001 and since 2003 I have become a state/national trainer.  The Leadership Academy is a wonderful program to be involved with; it changes many people’s lives.  I was a person who was always shy and would not stand up for my rights until I attended the Leadership Academy.  I can say that I use the skills that were taught in the Academy in my job and personal life.  I encourage everyone to attend this wonderful training.

Carolyn Stuart

Leadership Academy State/National Trainer

Jessica Stewart is the Southern Coalition Specialist for the Mental Health Network, a division of WV Mental Health Consumers Association.  She graduated from her first Leadership Academy in Spring of 1996.  She then attended the Leadership Academy Train the Trainers in Summer of 1998 where she then co-facilitated her first WV Leadership Academy.  She has since presented throughout the state of WV, as well as, across the nation.  “My experience with the Leadership Academy has been very beneficial.  It has helped my personal growth as well as my growth within the consumer movement.  I have learned skills of self-advocacy and community involvement.  I would highly recommend this program to all”. 

---

Kim Murphy
Leadership Academy State/National Trainer

I work for the West Virginia Mental Health Consumers' Association as the Director of Community Living.  I am a Leadership Academy Graduate and state/national trainer.  The Leadership Academy is a wonderful program and I would encourage anyone to get involved with this program.

David Boothe is the Education and Training Peer Support Specialist for the West Virginia Mental Health Consumers' Association Technical Assistance Center.  He is a state/national trainer. "The Leadership Academy has strengthened my recovery by giving me the skills to participate once again in my community and environment."

---

Demetra Halbert is the Supply Clerk/Voyage to Wellness Coordinator for West Virginia Mental Health Consumers' Association Technical Assistance Center.  She is a state trainer.  "The Leadership Academy has helped me to advocate for myself and to help others."

---

WV Leadership Academy Teaches:

Self Help
Obtaining skills to improve your quality of life

Collective Advocacy
A group of individuals acting together to actively speak out in favor of or against an issue

Leadership
An individual taking a proactive role in offering guidance and direction

Community Involvement
Taking an active role in exchanging information with a group of people having common interests.

Conducting meetings
Ability to effectively lead a group of individuals to accomplish goals or exchange information

Issue Awareness
Monitoring for any actions proposed on a subject that is important

Action Plans
A method of preparing for a project that involves breaking the project into steps, outlining desired results, resources needed to complete the project, and developing a timeline for completion

Benefits of WVLA:

• Networking

• Action Alerts

• Conference Calls

• Opportunities for advanced training

• Annual Conference

• Cost effectiveness

    The WV Leadership Academy takes place in the spring and fall of each year. The workshop is a three-day classroom event, with attention to the needs of participants. Apply today to be considered for the next Leadership Academy! Click HERE to view the next scheduled academy.

Workshop Description:

Lesson 1 - defines consumer involvement and explains the different forms it can take: individual, organizational, community, state and national.

Lesson 2 – offers an etiquette course that is important for the ultimate success of any consumer endeavor.

Lesson 3 – describes different types of information that are shared in meetings:  issues, announcements, and general discussion topics.

Lesson 4 - describes several sources of information that can be used to identify issues, such as personal observations, board minutes, press releases, etc.

Lesson 5 - helps consumers identify issues that are highly suitable for consumer organizations. Issue types portrayed help organize options for appropriate action. 

Lesson 6 - discusses how to select relevant issues to report to the group by considering interest, effect on others, relationship to current activities, etc. 

Lesson 7 – tells how to develop goals and clarify suggestions for action by the group for identified issues.  The Goal/Response Chart is introduced.

Lesson 8 – gives steps to reporting issues in a way so the interest of a group is stimulated and action is considered.

Lesson 9 - offers ideas and suggestions for organizing groups involved in community advocacy, including recruitment, the first meeting, and promotion.

Lesson 10 - describes how the chairperson and secretary can help in conducting effective meetings as members follow rules for a good discussion.

Lesson 11 - provides instructions for the group secretary on taking the minutes of group meetings, and explains the importance of recording minutes and managing group records. 

Lesson 12 - describes how to form an agenda to get the meeting started.

Lessons 13, 14, 15, 16 & 17 - show ways to hold an effective meeting including:  opening the meeting (13); leading discussions (14); taking votes (15); planning action projects (16) and closing meetings (17).

Lesson 18 - provides suggestions for working with culturally diverse populations and how to increase culturally sensitivity and understanding within a group.

Lesson 19 - presents some organizational considerations and general information regarding legal responsibilities and standards for advocacy groups.

What To Expect At The Leadership Academy: 

Enthusiasm: 

Participants at the Leadership Academy have an opportunity to take part in an exciting curriculum that can be useful with or without prior training in mental health issues, leadership, or advocacy.

Preparation:

Participants can expect to attend daily training sessions and to learn more about how to use individual skills to better understand group advocacy skills.

Responsibility:

Participants will create Action Plans to address real needs as selected during course work.  Completing the Leadership Academy offers participants a wonderful opportunity to apply individual skills toward group and community involvement and advocacy.

Map of WVLA Graduates:

Please Select County Barbour-2 Berkeley-21 Boone-8 Braxton-3 Brooke-7 Cabell-38 Calhoun-1 Clay-5 Doddridge-3 Fayette-3 Gilmer-0 Grant-2 Greenbrier-4 Hampshire-0 Hancock-3 Hardy-0 Harrison-38 Jackson-0 Jefferson-11 Kanawha-106 Lewis-2 Lincoln-3 Logan-2 Marion-12 Marshall-0 Mason-3 McDowell-5 Mercer-25 Mineral-1 Mingo-1 Monongalia-47 Monroe-0 Morgan-0 Nicholas-13 Ohio-13 Pendleton-0 Pleasants-0 Pocahontas-5 Preston-6 Putnam-5 Raleigh-14 Randolph-2 Ritchie-3 Roane-0 Summers-2 Taylor-6 Tucker-0 Tyler-0 Upshur-7 Wayne-11 Webster-1 Wetzel-0 Wirt-0 Wood-21 Wyoming-11 -Number of WVLA graduates per county

Welcome:
The key issue of the month is State-Wide Network Building. Please post your comments.

Click here to view submitted comments.

Supports:
Please share information regarding supports that have been beneficial to you.

Click here to view submitted comments.

Shared Learnings:
Please share any learnings that promote recovery.

Click here to view submitted comments.

Community:
Please share what has been successful for you in establishing community.
 
Please share barriers that consumers face in preventing them from assuming leadership roles.
 
Discuss ways to overcome the barriers.

Click here to view submitted comments.

West Virginia Leadership Academy : History

In the early 1990's, the Leadership Academy began in Idaho as a demonstration project consisting of a workshop on "Consumer Involvement In Community Advocacy Organizations". The goal was to provide consumers and families with skills needed to assume a position of strong leadership in changing the system of mental health services and supports. 

The concept for the West Virginia Leadership Academy came from the Idaho demonstration project. Members of the West Virginia Mental Health Consumers' Association (WVMHCA), the West Virginia Office of Behavioral Health Services, now known as the Bureau of Behavioral Health and Health Facilities (BHHF), and NAMI West Virginia (NAMI West Virginia), an affiliate of the National Alliance for the Mentally Ill (NAMI) prepared a grant proposal, which was funded by the Center for Mental Health Services (CMHS), of the Substance Abuse Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) to hold Leadership Academies in West Virginia. 

Today, the exemplary West Virginia Leadership Academy is solely a project of the West Virginia Mental Health Consumers' Association. Because of its success, (WVMHCA) has been able to present the Leadership Academy to other states through its Consumer Organization and Networking Technical Assistance Center (CONTAC) project, made possible through funding from (CMHS)

West Virginia Leadership Academy: Exemplary Practice

The West Virginia Leadership Academy is an exemplary self-help program with consistently applied methodology utilized to improve outcomes for adults with mental illness. The curriculum promotes empowerment, leadership, organizational skill-development, citizenship rights, and collective advocacy.

Evidence of the significance of the Leadership Academy has been validated through formal research (Hess, Clapper & Hekstra, 2001; Sabin, 2002; Stringfellow and Muscari, 2002). Consensus among these experts and community leaders reflects support for the program and its beneficial results.

The Leadership Academy has proven successful for adults with mental health and/or co-occurring concerns because it emphasizes the importance of peer-support, responsibility, empowerment and recovery-oriented strategies. It is beneficial to the community-at-large by supporting collective advocacy, increasing networking and greater civic involvement, and improving awareness of and action on local issues and concerns.

The Leadership Academy has a nineteen-chapter manual with additional appendices. It is enhanced by a series of overhead transparencies. Handouts are available for a Leadership Academy Train-the-Trainers and there is also a planning guide to assist groups in preparing to conduct their own Leadership Academy. 

Contact WVLA

Please contact Kelly Lane, Leadership Academy Coordinator, at:

Technical Assistance Center
P.O. Box 11000
Charleston, WV 25339
Phone: 1-800-598-8847
Fax: 1-304-342-3562
E-mail: kellylane@contac.org

Upcoming Events

Past Events
 

Please mark your calendars! The Leadership Academy Graduates Conference Call will take place on Thursday March 2, 2006 from 1:00 to 2:00
Dial In Number-1-877-567-1262
Pass Code: 762440

Featured Publications

"Consumer Voice - Winter 2006 Edition" OPEN -Adobe PDF Format

"Sabin Article" OPEN -Adobe PDF Format

"Hess Article" OPEN -Adobe PDF Format

"Stringfellow & Muscari Article" OPEN -Adobe PDF Format

Action Alerts

Posted as they occur.

Legislative Issues

How A Bill Becomes A Law

Legislative Wrap Up Volume XVIII

Legislative Contacts Contact Information for WV Legislators

Citizens Guide to the Legislature

WV Legislature Homepage Provides information on current and past legislation in West Virginia, contact information for elected state officials.

Related Sites

        Mental Health Services Locator This database includes information about 1,800 organizations and government offices that provide mental health services.  http://www.mentalhealth.org/databases/default.asp

      Online Recovery Resources directory of online support, self-help and recovery resources. www.onlinerecovery.org/ 

      Recovery Inc. provides a self-help mental health program based on the work of Abraham A. Low, M.D.
www.recovery-inc.com/

            All About Suicide - Mental Health Net

Learn all about suicide -- what it is and what you can do to prevent it.
http://suicide.mentalhelp.net

                Survivors of Suicide

                Life-Lines Project

                Online Counseling, Email Counseling, & Phone Counseling: Axis-One.Com

                Coping.org

                Advocacy Unlimited, Inc.

                Bazelon Center for Mental Health Law

                Friendship Network

                Headroom

                Mental Health and Aging

                Mental Health InfoSource

                MentalHealthRecovery.com

Depression self-help strategies, books and videos for dealing with depression, manic depression, adolescent depression and fibromyalgia.
http://www.mentalhealthrecovery.com

                NAMI ( National Alliance for the Mentally Ill )

                Self Help Warehouse

An  on-line self help source for adults and children offering an extensive variety of self help and educational tools.
http://www.selfhelpwarehouse.com

                The Mental Illness Education Project, Inc.

                Walkers In Darkness

Technical Assistance Center Links

Consumer Organization & Networking Technical Assistance Center (CONTAC)
A national technical assistance center, Contac serves as a resource center for consumers/survivors/ex-patients and consumer-run organizations.  www.contac.org

Freedom Self-Advocacy Curriculum
NMHA, the National Mental Health Consumers' Self-Help Clearinghouse, and the National Association of Protection and Advocacy Systems have collaborated in creating the Freedom Self-Advocacy Curriculum. This series of 3 workshops on the knowledge, skills, and attitudes behind self-advocacy will prepare you to teach others how to advocate for themselves. www.mhselfhelp.org/freedom/

National Empowerment Center
The Mission of the National Empowerment Center is to carry a message of recovery, empowerment, hope and healing to people who have been diagnosed with mental illness.  www.power2u.org

National Mental Health Consumers' Self-Help Clearinghouse
The Clearinghouse is a consumer-run national technical assistance center established in 1986 and funded by a grant from the Federal Center for Mental Health Services. We are committed to helping mental health consumers improve their lives through self-help and advocacy.  www.mhselfhelp.org

Other States

Massachusetts Leadership Academy  - The leadership Academy is a training process involving citizenship, advocacy, leadership, and organizational skills for groups of consumers.
www.m-power.org/leadership.htm  

Kentucky Leadership Academy
http://www.contac.org/Kentucky

Maine Leadership Academy
http://www.contac.org/Maine

Colorado Leadership Academy
http://www.contac.org/Colorado

North Carolina Leadership Academy
http://www.contac.org/NCarolina

Questions and Feedback:

Application Request:

For an application, please contact Kelly Lane, Leadership Academy Coordinator via phone, fax, or email at:

Phone: 1-800-598-8847
Fax: 1-304-342-3562
E-mail: kellylane@contac.org

We also have a PDF version of the application. You may download it by clicking the link below.

"Leadership Academy Application" DOWNLOAD - Adobe PDF Format