Mississippi Youth Resilience Center to serve trauma-affected youth and families

Aggie Rieger, Ph.D., Assistant Professor in the Mississippi State University Department of Psychology, has been awarded an approximately $3 million, five-year grant from the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration to build the Mississippi Youth Resilience Center (MY-REC). This grant builds on Dr. Rieger’s research and clinical expertise in trauma-focused intervention and community engagement, and highlights MSU Psychology faculty’s dedication to both research and public service. MY-REC will be housed in Mississippi State University Behavioral Health; the MY-REC team includes Dr. Mary Nelson Robertson, of MSU Extension, and Drs. Sam Murphy, Cliff McKinney, and Michael Nadorff, of the Department of Psychology. 

Mississippi children experience trauma at rates among the highest in the nation. According to a Child Trends analysis of the National Survey of Children's Health, 46.3 percent of Mississippi children have experienced at least one adverse childhood experience. This is the third-highest rate among all states. Meanwhile, Mississippi has the fewest psychologists per capita of any U.S. state, with nearly a tenfold gap between Mississippi and the state with the most mental health providers per capita. The need for evidence-based, trauma-focused intervention is further compounded for youth with developmental differences and disabilities, as trauma-specific treatments and clinician trainings are rarely adapted for this population's needs. 

MY-REC's overarching goal is to close Mississippi's trauma-treatment gap with attention to rural youth and youth with developmental disabilities. MY-REC will deliver evidence-based and evidence-informed trauma treatment and build a sustainable, trained multi-sector community referral network. MY-REC will also partner with primary care clinics and schools to learn helpful ways for MY-REC and similar treatment clinics to integrate services. Services will be further shaped by engagement activities including community listening sessions, an advisory board, and a learning community. Across MY-REC, ongoing evaluation activities utilizing qualitative, quantitative, and mixed-methods designs will not only improve MY-REC services, but contribute to broader research and service improvements.