Mental health services are one of the Villa's fastest growing areas. In order to increase service capacity and meet the community need, the Villa in partnership with Region IV CSB's has moved its Crisis Stabilization Unit (CSU). The CSU is now located the south end of the Villa campus at 7700 Brook Road. The CSU's new location allows for the increase from six beds to eight. It also houses a kitchen, dining ...Read More
After being placed out of public school for behavioral issues, Teon learned to manage his emotions and gained self-confidence through Therapeutic Day Treatment at St. Joseph's Villa. He returned to his public school for fifth grade and finished the year as an award-winning student. Teon received the school's LAMP Award (Library, Arts, Music & PE) for excellence in participation and conduct. The award is given to one 5th grade boy and girl. ...Read More
St. Joseph's Villa and Henrico CASA (Court Appointed Special Advocates for Children) have enjoyed a longstanding partnership in serving the community's most vulnerable children. The Villa campus has hosted CASA's Superhero Run for the past seven years, and now, thanks to CASA, our campus will soon have a new resource to enhance the physical and mental health of Villa children and families. CASA is donating a shaded pavilion that can be used for a variety ...Read More
St. Joseph's Villa has partnered with Insight Telepsychiatry to bring telepsychiatry services to our Crisis Stabilization Unit, a therapeutic setting that diverts children in mental health crisis from unnecessary hospitalization. Why is this partnership important? Telepsychiatry provides a medium designed to help children better express themselves, and thereby help families discover what will help them prevent future crises. “Kids are used to Skyping, but they can be intimidated by adults. Children can ...Read More
The Council on Accreditation (COA) presents the Innovative Practices Award to spotlight organizations that bring lasting change to the lives of vulnerable individuals through unique, forward-thinking initiatives. This year, our life-saving Crisis Stabilization Unit (CSU) will be named runner-up for this national honor at the annual COA Conference in New York City. The CSU opened in 2012 in partnership with Richmond Behavioral Health Authority (RBHA) Region IV as the first ...Read More
Project Yoga Richmond has teamed with our Crisis Stabilization Unit (CSU) for the past year to teach kids how to cope with their emotions through yoga. Yoga activities help offer a holistic approach to treatment by reinforcing the impact of physical health on mental health and increasing self-esteem. Yoga therapist Carolyn Keller Sells volunteers at the CSU each week. “By the end of each class all the kids seem to ...Read More
On Children's Mental Health Awareness Day (May 8), Governor Terry McAuliffe signed eight new legislative bills in mental health reform at St. Joseph's Villa. Click the links below for information about each bill. HB 293 -- HB 323 -- HB 478 -- HB 574 -- HB 743 -- HB 1172 -- HB 1222 -- HB 1232 May is Mental Health Month. Thanks to our mental health professionals for helping our children and families build brighter futures ...Read More
While winter slowly but surely makes its way out, our students are eagerly awaiting the return of gardening time at the Villa. Now they have one more reason to look forward to a sunny spring full of planting, harvesting and outdoor learning: the addition of a brand new greenhouse in our Learning & Therapy Garden. Generously donated by The Good Shepherd Fund, the greenhouse will provide a new way for our students ...Read More
The Op/Ed Lessons leared: helping kids by Villa CEO Kathleen Burke Barrett was recently published in the Richmond Times-Dispatch. How can you help a child struggling with mental illness? Read the full article on the RTD website to learn what Kathleen's personal and professional experiences have taught her. As she writes in the article, "Children's mental health services are the fastest-growing area." Click here to find out more about what we ...Read More
The following post was written by Jenny Friar, Director of Development for St. Joseph's Villa: The natural environment constitutes one of the most basically important ingredients of human psychological existence. It is an essential, critical, and irreplaceable part of healthy maturation and development. -- Dr. Stephen R. Kellert, Yale University If you spent time out of doors as a child, then you will already know intuitively much of what ...Read More
