Massachusetts Prevention Solution Fellowship
By Kyle Mushkin, Director of Prevention and Charel Murrell, Prevention and Survivor Leadership Manager
The My Life My Choice Prevention Solution Fellowship (PSF), now in its third year nationally, has provided congregate care programs with valuable training and consultation in implementing the My Life My Choice Prevention Solution Model of preventing the commercial sexual exploitation of children (CSEC). Following the success of the PSF on a national level, in 2021 My Life My Choice partnered with the Massachusetts Department of Children and Families (DCF) to bring the PSF to congregate care programs serving female-identifying youth in Massachusetts, and we are thrilled to announce that in the second year of the Massachusetts PSF we are accepting ten congregate care programs.
Five Young Parent Living Programs, referred by DCF, began their PSF year on January 1st, and they will be joined by five congregate care programs serving female-identifying youth. This cohort of ten will not only engage in the basic framework of the PSF, but will also have opportunities to meet with each other and My Life My Choice staff in person. They can also choose to attend optional CSEC trainings on more specialized topics.
In expanding the PSF, particularly into Young Parent Living programs that serve youth age 16-21, our goal is to reach as many marginalized youths as possible in a one-year period. Ultimately, we intend to involve every adolescent female-serving congregate care program in Massachusetts in the Prevention Solution Fellowship, implementing the Prevention Solution Model as widely as possible.
Since 2020, 15 programs in 12 states have benefited from the PSF, establishing policies, procedures, and practices that integrate CSEC prevention into day-to-day operations and interactions with the youth they serve. Five programs statewide were selected to participate in the inaugural 2021-2022 cohort, receiving the same comprehensive training and expert consultation around CSEC prevention with vulnerable youth. These five programs, Key Program in Methuen, Bridges Homeward in Cambridge/Malden, Wayside Youth and Family Support Network in Framingham, The Home in Plymouth, and the Center for Human Development in Springfield, each completed their PSF year in the fall of 2022 and will continue to implement the Prevention Solution Model (PSM) moving forward. They will also remain connected to My Life My Choice and each other as PSF alumni.
Survivor involvement is an essential component of our Prevention Solution Model, and as with all My Life My Choice programming, it is integrated into the Prevention Solution Fellowship.
“We know how important it is to reach every youth most affected; those who are in the child welfare system are amongst the most vulnerable. These are black and brown girls, state to state and country to country that look like me. Unlike me, a Survivor who didn’t have this information, I know firsthand what it looks like to be susceptible to predators/child abusers who manipulate, control, and prey on the susceptibilities of adolescents,” said Charel Murrell, our Prevention and Survivor Leadership Manager and Survivor.
In her role, she offers Prevention group support, consultation, and CSEC education through a Survivor lens. Our 10-session Exploitation Prevention Curriculum focuses on preventing CSEC for female-identified adolescents between the ages of 12 and 18. Facilitators who are local and national provide youth with the knowledge and tools needed to understand what CSEC is and how it happens. With the Young Parent Living Programs starting the MA PSF, our goal is to continue to educate providers on how to recognize and respond to youth and educate them on our prevention curriculum.
As the first half of Fiscal Year 2023 comes to a close, our partners have completed 20% more Prevention groups than at the same time in Fiscal Year 2022. We are excited and hope that in the next six months we are able to provide even more groups locally and nationally with the help of our partners. Thank you to all the facilitators, new and our OGs, who are hungry for the success of the youth they serve.