Teen Talk

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Amount:
$50,000
Year:
2020
Field of Interest:
Program Name:
Teen Talk
Grant Type:
COVID-19 Response
Grant Website
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ORGANIZATION DESCRIPTION

Founded in 1915, Jewish Big Brothers Big Sisters of Los Angeles (JBBBSLA) helps children and teens who need an additional role model in their lives. It works with more than 1,800 youth per year through a variety of mentoring programs, camp experiences, college guidance programs, teen empowerment workshops, and scholarship funds. 

GRANT PURPOSE

Teen Talk  trains Jewish teens under the guidance of trained practitioners, to become effective peer mentors to other teens seeking support for anxiety, depression, relationships, family issues, school and beyond, who connect via a smartphone application. The program aims to build a community of empathetic teens, inspired by Jewish values, who are ambassadors of social and emotional health. Since the COVID-19 pandemic, there has been a dramatic increase in posts related to self-harm. As a result, JBBBSLA is working to expand the number of days and hours that teen advisors and the licensed social workers supervising the teens are working to ensure the mental health and safety of their peers from five days a week/four hours a day to seven days a week/five hours a day. 

Teens today understand the vital need for one's mental well-being, not just physical. That's why we are grateful to the Jewish Community Foundation of Los Angeles for their continued support of our mobile app, Teen Talk. During the past few months of social distancing and stay-at-home orders, we have seen a significant increase in requests for support from teens across the country. Thanks to The Foundation's support, Teen Talk can continue to provide teens with the emotional support they need.

Randy Schwab
CEO, Jewish Big Brothers Big Sisters