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Jun 09

Empathy in Action: Why Volunteering with Kids Today Shapes a Better Tomorrow

By Feature

By: Brandy Jemczura, Founder and Executive Director of Seeds of Caring

Research abounds on the benefits of volunteering, but what role does this play in childhood development? In a world grappling with rising youth mental health concerns, declining empathy, and social disconnection, giving kids the chance to serve their communities may be one of the most powerful—and overlooked—tools we have. Volunteering helps children build emotional resilience, understand different life experiences, and feel connected to something bigger than themselves. And it doesn’t just benefit the kids. It builds stronger families, more compassionate communities, and a generation better prepared to lead with empathy and intention.

At Seeds of Caring, we imagine a future with more empathy, something that research shows is under threat in today’s culture. According to a study in the Personality and Social Psychology Review, empathy among college students has dropped significantly since the 1980s, with the steepest decline in recent years. And yet, empathy is the foundation for kindness, collaboration, and strong communities.

But there’s good news: empathy can be taught as young as age 2—and volunteering is one of the most powerful ways to do it.

Why Should Kids Volunteer?

Volunteering isn’t just something kids should do—it’s something that actively benefits them. A study from UTHealth Houston found that children who volunteer are 18-35% less likely to experience anxiety or depression. Additionally, research from the National Institute on Out-of-School Time shows that 76% of children who volunteer feel happier and more connected than their peers.

Beyond mental health, volunteering boosts self-efficacy, improves academic outcomes, and builds critical social-emotional skills such as social awareness. When kids are given the chance to take action in their communities, they begin to see themselves as capable problem-solvers and powerful changemakers.

Kids Volunteering Today = Thriving Adults Tomorrow

Did you know there is a strong case for the long-term impacts of youth volunteering? A longitudinal study published in the American Journal of Public Health found that children who developed strong prosocial skills early in life were more likely to become healthy, resilient, civic-minded adults. They were less likely to struggle with substance abuse or mental illness and more likely to succeed in school and the workplace.

When we think of workforce development in today’s job market, soft skills like teamwork, communication, and empathy are in high demand—but only 11% of business leaders believe new graduates possess the soft skills they need. That’s a gap we can close if we begin building these skills intentionally through service and volunteering from a young age.

When Families Serve Together

The benefits of youth service don’t stop with the kids. When families volunteer together, they create a shared culture of caring and a strong sense of mutual responsibility. Service becomes a family tradition. It opens the door to conversations about poverty, racism, and inequality—topics that can be hard to broach, but are essential to raising informed and empathetic children.

At Seeds of Caring, we often hear from parents who say that engaging in service helped normalize difficult conversations at home. When a child learns about someone experiencing homelessness through our partner Horizon House, or helps prepare a meal for families working hard to make ends meet through Midwest Food Bank, they start asking big, bold questions. And through these conversations, parents are able to nurture values that last a lifetime.

A study from the Corporation for National and Community Service backs this up: kids who volunteer regularly are 50% more likely to be engaged in their communities as adults. That’s the kind of legacy families can create together.

A Stronger, More Connected Community

There is one final benefit to youth volunteering that we haven’t discussed yet—it strengthens our community in tangible ways. Programs that build empathy and social-emotional skills during childhood offer an estimated $11 return for every $1 invested, thanks to the positive social, economic, and health outcomes they produce (Columbia University).

In 2023, the U.S. Surgeon General issued a rare public health advisory declaring social isolation and loneliness a national epidemic. He warned that the disconnection so many Americans are experiencing—especially our youth—has profound effects on mental and physical health, rivaling the impact of smoking and obesity. But along with issuing this warning, he identified three powerful remedies to combat this epidemic: service, love, and purpose. When children engage in meaningful service, they practice all of these and they feel connected, valued, and empowered to make a difference. Volunteering helps kids see that they have a role to play in making their community a better place and that purpose is something they can live out right now, by showing up for others.

Finally, youth volunteers bring something special to the table: fresh perspectives, boundless energy, and a deep desire to make the world a better place. Whether they’re cleaning up a local park through Keep Indianapolis Beautiful or preparing care kits for guests at Westminster Neighborhood Services, these young changemakers are already shaping the future of our city.

How Seeds of Caring Is Making It Easy

At Seeds of Caring, we’re proud to work alongside more than 30 incredible non-profit partners to ensure that kids ages 2-12 in Greater Indianapolis can engage in meaningful, age-appropriate service.

Our model pairs hands-on action with learning and reflection, because we know that kids don’t just need something to do—they need space to talk about what they’re learning and how it makes them feel. Every project is thoughtfully designed with empathy-building at its core.

Whether you’re a parent, educator, scout leader, or community member, there’s a way to get involved. Through public events, school programs, and even at-home opportunities, Seeds of Caring provides the tools and support to make service part of kids’ everyday lives.

Let’s Raise the Next Generation of Changemakers

Want to know how Seeds of Caring is changing our world for the better? Just ask the kids.

We recently invited a group of young volunteers to imagine what the world would look like if every child learned to empathize and volunteer in their community. Their answers?

  • “There would be less hatred and more kindness.”
  • “Everybody would be equal.”
  • “We would be one big community.”
  • And this one that gives me goosebumps every time: “More people would do what is right, not what is easy.”

So let’s imagine an Indianapolis where every child knows their voice matters. Let’s raise a generation that looks beyond themselves, recognizes the power they hold to strengthen their communities, and leads with compassion.

Get Involved

If you live in the Greater Indianapolis area visit seedsofcaring.org to explore upcoming service opportunities, register your child for a program, or partner with us to bring empathy-building experiences to your school or organization.

Dr. Jane Goodall once said, “You aren’t going to save the world on your own. But you might inspire a generation of kids to save it for all of us. You would be amazed at what inspired children can do.” Together, we can raise a generation that’s not only ready for the future—but ready to change it for the better. Join us!

Sep 05

Our 2023 survey reveals many nonprofit employees continue to struggle with challenges

By Feature

As a local nonprofit veteran put it, COVID-19, inflation, and organizational flaws all contribute to an inability to thrive in the sector

(This is the first of a two-part article series based on our recent “How Are You Doing?” survey).

With more than three years passing since the outbreak of COVID-19, Charitable Advisors’ Not-for-profit News decided to revisit the survey question we asked of Central Indiana nonprofit employees in 2020: “How are you doing?”

Of the 366 survey respondents, 38.5 percent said that they are feeling “Upbeat and positive about the future.” However, 14 percent said that “Not good, hard to get through the day” was a more accurate definition of how they’re feeling in 2023. And the majority — 47.5 percent said their mindset is “Acceptable, getting by.”

More significantly, 21.5 percent said that they are “doing worse” than they were two years ago — at the height of the turmoil caused by the pandemic and social justice protests. The remaining respondents were evenly split between the choices “Doing better” (40.4 percent) and “About the same” (38 percent).

Some of these varying sentiments were conveyed by a survey respondent who has been working in the nonprofit sector for nearly 20 years. The past several years have been so challenging, she said, that she is planning to leave her organization.

“The nonprofit world is near and dear to my heart,” the survey respondent said during an interview in which she requested anonymity. “But the last three to four years have been so rough in our agency that I am currently looking to leave.”

The main reason? Leadership, said the survey respondent, who described the need for a leadership team that is positive, genuine, trustworthy, diverse in any area, puts aside pride and sets a good example.

“I believe COVID exposed problem areas,” she said. “When there is denial of the root cause, there cannot be correction to the path.”

However, she also pointed to external factors that have contributed to her dissatisfaction with working in the nonprofit sector.

“Overall, as a sector, it is worse due to staffing shortages and the quantity/higher needs of clients,” she said. “Inflation plays a role as well. For the most part, non-for-profit careers are not high paying.”

With the rising costs of living, brought on by inflation, nonprofit organizations have been struggling with fundraising while, at the same time, facing an increased need for services from people who need assistance, she said.

“It has been a constant drain,” she said.

Another anonymous survey respondent shared similar concerns, particularly from the perspective of expanding job demands, particularly for those who work for community foundations.

“I’ve been in the nonprofit sector for almost a decade, and this has by far been my hardest role,” the survey respondent said. “In the past, I’ve been told the workload ebbed and flowed around grant cycles, but since I’ve been here it’s felt more like climbing a constant mountain and never reaching the peak.”

Much of the increased demands can be attributed to the changing role of community foundations, she said.

“As community foundations move away from being ‘just a funder’ and into more leading/convening spaces surrounding community leadership, it requires much more from the staff than grant/scholarship review and coordination,” she said. “We are now required to have other sets of skills like strategic planning, coalition facilitation, capacity building, collective impact, research, and evaluation. We also will never have enough funding for all the needs in our community, so having the skills and emotional intelligence to navigate those hard conversations and situations as well as the IQ to piece together other opportunities or support from the foundation is crucial and required.

There’s a real feeling of having to be ‘on’ all the time, she said, including knowing the pulse of the community, understanding the needs of every nonprofit, connecting with various sectors in the community, attending evening and weekend events, and being available for emails and phone calls throughout the day.

Overall, the survey revealed that 36 percent of Central Indiana’s nonprofit employees feel “excellent or very good” about finding purpose in their work, while 45 percent rated it as “pretty good.” However, 18.3 percent said that they were no longer connecting to a purpose in their work.

Jun 26

Mental health is today’s workplace priority

By Feature, Mental Health

by Shari Finnell, editor/writer, Not-for-profit News

The impact of mental health challenges in the workplace is becoming increasingly clear.

According to a recent survey by the American Psychological Association, 59 percent of all employees surveyed reported experiencing negative impacts of work-related stress in the previous month. Another international report calculated the financial toll of depression, anxiety, and stress on the global economy at $1 trillion.

Other studies point to similar patterns related to mental health:

  • 92 percent of employees said they experienced mental health challenges that impacted their work. — 2022 Workplace Survey
  • 76 percent of U.S. employees reported at least one symptom of a mental health condition. — Mind Share Partners
  • 84 percent of employees said that their workplace conditions contributed to a least one mental health condition — Mind Share Partners

These trends prompted our team at Not-for-profit News to dedicate two months of our weekly features to the topic of mental health. As the U.S. Surgeon General recently indicated in a new report, we believe employers will increasingly be at the forefront of addressing the mental health needs of Americans.

We have compiled a list of resources and articles published in May and June to support your work toward supporting the health and well-being of you and your employees. You can regularly visit Focus on Mental Health as a reference.

Some of the leading articles in this two-month series included the following:

Is your nonprofit suffering the effects of secondary trauma?
9 steps toward staff ‘self-care’ policies
New certification program encourages Indiana employers to develop more robust mental health initiatives
Mental health: The new leadership imperative
How fundraisers can get off the road to exhaustion and burnout
Nonprofit ramps up efforts to address Indiana’s mental health crisis

Here is a summary of some initiatives your nonprofit can consider when developing a mental health strategy for the workplace:

  • Create a culture of mental health awareness and support. Educate employees about mental health, provide resources and support, and create a safe and supportive environment where employees feel comfortable talking about mental health.
  • Offer mental health benefits. Ensure employees have access to mental health care, such as counseling and therapy. Consider providing paid time off for mental health days as a benefit.
  • Promote healthy work-life balance. If you haven’t already done so, introduce flexible work arrangements, such as telecommuting and flextime, if possible. Also, encourage employees to take their designated breaks and vacation time.
  • Address workplace stress. Take the time to identify sources of workplace stress, such as long hours, unrealistic expectations, and lack of support.
  • Support employees with mental health conditions. Provide accommodations and support for employees who are struggling with mental health conditions. Different options can include providing a quiet place to work, allowing for flexible work hours, and providing access to mental health care.
Jun 19

An effective mental wellness strategy demands a diverse approach

By Feature

by Shari Finnell, editor/writer, Not-for-profit News

Facing high rates of absenteeism? Or low rates of employee engagement? If so, you may need to consider how well you’re addressing the mental health needs of your employees — especially in developing different approaches for various demographics, according to Jamie Bierman, SHRM-SCP, regional market director at HR Elements, a partner of VonLehman CPA & Advisory Firm.

Gen Z employees, who are just now entering the workforce, may require a significantly different mental wellness strategy than Millennials and employees nearing retirement, according to Bierman, who recently talked to attendees of a HR Nonprofit Peer Group webinar sponsored by Charitable Advisors.

As a result, human resource (HR) professionals and other workplace leaders need to consider how to strategically develop wellness programs based on the needs of various generations as well as cultural backgrounds, Bierman said.

“The workplace consists of all types of different generations and different types of people,” she said. “A mental health is not a one-size-fits-all strategy or solution.”

One of the reasons driving the need for a multi-faceted approach is that the COVID-19 pandemic further shed light on the complexities of mental wellness. Bierman said that many factors can contribute to an employee’s performance at work. For example, an employee may be facing additional stressors if they are in a caretaking role for a child or an elderly parent.

And with 19 percent of U.S. employees reporting that they are struggling with their mental health, nonprofit organizations and other business naturally will experience negative outcomes such as a decrease in employee engagement, Bierman said. Consequently, organizations will see a decrease in business profitability and overall business results, she noted.

“Having a well-being program at work is the new wellness focus that we need to have,” Bierman said. “We need to remember that work and life are not mutually exclusive. We need to help our employees thrive within their lives. If you have a really bad morning, you’re probably not going to walk into the workplace ready to do a good job.”

The pandemic represented a period of managing stress and the unexpected at higher levels. “As HR professionals, not only are we managing it for ourselves, but we’re also trying to figure out how to help all of those individuals — even though we don’t know exactly what’s going on in their lives,” she said.

Bierman highlighted numerous ways that HR professionals can be more effective in addressing the complexities of assisting employees with mental health programs.

Consider generational differences. Bierman said that differences emerge based upon the generation of the employee. For examples, younger employees — such as Gen Zs — are more likely to prioritize mental health. “During job interviews, these are the people who will ask questions like, ‘What mental health resources do you have?’ ‘How many additional PTO days do you provide for a mental health break?’” The needs of older employees — those in their 40s and 50s — may be significantly different because of their increased responsibilities, Bierman said. “This age group that was seeing the highest increases in stress, anxiety, and feelings of negativity in 2021,” she said. “Many of them are probably in high-ranking positions or are stepping into new leadership roles that are demanding and stressful.”

A third demographic that may be facing mental health challenges are those approaching retirement. “They’re probably stressed for different reasons. It may be because they haven’t been able to retire,” Bierman said. “They may be dealing with fear and anxiety, which will have an impact on their mental health.”

Address racial and ethnic disparities. There are racial and ethnic disparities when addressing the mental health crisis in general, Bierman said. Minority groups typically are impacted by mental stress at a higher level but they’re less likely to use these services, she noted. Reports reveal that Asian employees are 51 percent less likely to seek mental help treatment than their white counterparts. Those numbers are 25 percent less likely among Latinos and 21 percent less likely among Black employees. Less representation of minorities in the mental health field and cultural norms contribute to those varying numbers, Bierman said. Similar differences emerge for gender and sexual minorities, who also experience higher rates of poor mental health outcomes. “They’re going to suffer in silence because, from a cultural perspective, it’s not OK to seek mental health support,” Bierman said. Consequently, HR professionals must build connections, relationships, and trust among minority and underrepresented groups, she said.

Regularly promote employee assistance services. One effective way of addressing mental health, Bierman said, is to promote the company’s employee assistance program (EAP) throughout the year — not just during the onboarding process.

“We often enroll employees and then walk away,” she said. “In many cases, when we talk about EAP, we’re focused on promoting the counseling aspects of it. But a lot of EAP programs can help an employee access resources in their community.”

These can include helping an employee find daycare for a child or adult care for an aging parent or helping them with financial challenges.

“Instead of talking about the EAP only during open enrollment and during the health care portion of your benefit presentation, you can regularly talk about EAP in a weekly news blast or in text message reminders to employees,” she said.

Mental Health for a diverse organization webinar replay. One size doesn’t fit all when it comes to the subject of mental health in a diverse workforce. This interactive discussion outlines tips and strategies organizations can take to address the topic of mental health and wellness in a multi-generational workplace. Presented by Nonprofit HR Peer Group. Watch replay

Jun 05

Nonprofit ramps up efforts to address Indiana’s mental health crisis

By Feature, Mental Health

by Shari Finnell, editor/writer, Not-for-profit News

When it comes to addressing mental health, Indiana has statistically lagged behind other states. Based on an often cited 2021 report by the National Alliance on Mental Illness, the state ranked 42nd in addressing mental health among Indiana.

Some of the statistics underlying that ranking tell a more comprehensive story:

  • Nearly 40 percent of adults in Indiana reported symptoms of anxiety or depression, but 19 percent were unable to access counseling or therapy.
  • Nearly 1.3 million Hoosier adults report they have a mental health condition.
  • More than 4.4 million of Indiana residents live in a community that does not have enough mental health professionals.
  • Of the 345,000 adults in Indiana who did not receive needed mental health care, 37.4 percent cited it was because of cost.

These mental health conditions can be traced to the lingering impact of COVID-19, according to Paul Conrad, director of training and development for ASPIN, a nonprofit that has launched a Reduce the Stigma initiative to train more certified community health workers (CHW) to bridge the gap between mental health needs and available support services.

Even as day-to-day activities normalize, the extended periods of social isolation and prolonged fear people experienced during the pandemic are manifesting in increasing cases of mental health challenges.

“We hear across the board that COVID was rough,” he said. “But it was worse than a lot of people realized until we started talking about it and it became part of the national conversation.”

ASPIN recently received $100,000 to support the development of webinar training on various topics, including outreach efforts to support mental health initiatives among marginalized communities, including African American, Hispanic, and Indigenous people. The first session, scheduled for June 26, focuses on reducing the stigma of mental illness among African American men.

While the training supports the ongoing development of CHWs, it also is open to the general public to gain insights, said Julia Holloway, director of program development for ASPIN. Holloway said the online training can provide insights that support a better understanding of cultural differences among different populations. 

“Our community health worker training can help anyone gain a better understanding of how to engage with your clients or your customers,” she said. “The more you can understand the particular cultural differences in the population that you’re dealing with, particularly if you’re not from that population, that can be valuable for any nonprofit leader.

In Indiana, nearly 70 percent of community health workers are white, compared to 9 percent African American and 5 percent Hispanic or Latino, according to a 2020 needs assessment report issued by Purdue University.

ASPIN also focuses on related challenges to gaining mental health support, including lack of health insurance.

“We know with any health equity challenges or mental health, all the things that we strive to work on, really comes down to health insurance,” Holloway said. “You’re not able to access services if you don’t have good health insurance.”

ASPIN’s team is concerned that an increasing number of Hoosiers who are in need of mental health services will no longer be able to access them as grace periods for obtaining Medicaid and other governmental support at certain income levels expire.ASPIN has trained more than 1,800 community health workers since it was founded nearly 30 years ago. Anyone interested in applying for certification as a CHW, can visit the organization’s website.

May 15

New certification program encourages Indiana employers to develop more robust mental health initiatives

By Feature, Mental Health

Executive for Mental Health of America of Indiana discusses recent developments in efforts to advocate for mental wellness

by Shari Finnell, editor/writer, Not-for-profit News

With the recent approval of a $100 million Senate bill, Indiana is making inroads in providing much needed mental health resources to residents. But the funds still fall significantly short of what’s needed to address the state’s mental health needs, according to Stephanie Anderson, chief operating officer of Mental Health America of Indiana.

Anderson, who has been among the advocates championing for more attention to the state’s mental health needs, noted that Indiana continues to rank among the last in the nation when it comes to providing adequate mental health services to residents. Currently, Indiana ranks 42nd in the nation when it comes to mental health, according to the State of Mental Health in America 2023 report.

Anderson said the mental health bill is unprecedented in addressing mental health at this level in Indiana, but it has its limitations because of the two-year period of coverage. “For the caucus to consider mental health their No. 1 priority is a huge deal,” she said. “We have mixed emotions about it. I’m glad we’re paying attention to it and glad we passed the bill, but the funds do not support a sustainable program.”

Mental Health America is among the nonprofit organizations targeting gaps in mental health awareness and resources through various educational programs, toolkits, research, and advocacy. One of its most recent initiatives is the Bell Seal for Mental Health certification program, which encourages employers to develop more robust mental health programs in the workplace.

The concept of the Bell Seal certification predates the pandemic, Anderson said.

“The original thought behind it was multifaceted,” she said. “MHA national was really hoping to highlight organizations that are doing right by their employees in terms of mental health and supporting mental health from several different angles.”

The designation also provides a resource or technical assistance for employers that want to do more, said Anderson, who noted that since the program is fairly new, many employers, including those in Indiana, are unaware of the certification.

“We’ve been discussing ways to bring it to Indiana on a bigger level, including adding it as an invaluable resource to Indiana employers,” she said. “This recent session was huge for mental health, and we need to keep that momentum going.”

Insights from Bell Seal recipients

As part of the annual, national Bell Seal certification process, employers seeking to be recognized for creating mentally healthy workplaces undergo a comprehensive 58-criteria application. The process requires teams to evaluate organizational policies and practices that improve employee mental health outcomes, including workplace culture, benefits, compliance, and wellness programs. 

Of the 92 recipients of the 2022 Bell Seal certification, 20 percent represented the nonprofit sector, the second largest group of recipients. Healthcare organizations represented the leading group of recipients at 28 percent.

Some areas that the Bell Seal recipients focused on as part of their efforts to support the mental wellness of their employees included the following:

  • Increased or improved mental health benefits and additional resource support.
  • Provided full coverage of mental health counseling visits, regardless of provider or network
  • Covered in- and out-of-network benefits at the same co-pay or co-insurance rates
  • Implemented $0 co-pay for unlimited mental health therapy sessions
  • Reimbursed 50% of mental health therapy session costs
  • Increased telehealth options
  • Increased number of EAP sessions to 6, 10, or 12 counseling sessions
  • Offered a free virtual 1:1 counseling program
  • Evaluated compensation equity and role structure.
  • Increased compensation transparency and equity
  • Increased minimum wage to reflect the current costs of living
  • Restructured roles to fit employees’ needs
  • Implemented permanent flexible work schedules and enhanced leave policies.
  • Implemented a permanent hybrid work environment
  • Offered paid family leave to care for family members with health conditions
  • Implemented floating and organization-wide “Mental Health Days”
  • Suggested “No Meeting Wednesdays” to focus on other work responsibilities
  • Suggested two-hour blocks on calendars for no meetings
  • Designated a team or individual to identify and address mental health concerns in the workplace.
  • Educated new employees about mental health benefits and support during orientation or onboarding processes.
  • Provided mental health training for supervisors or employees. According to MHA’s 2022 Mind the Workplace report findings, only 46% of companies provide mental health training. 

Employers who are interested in the program can review a pre-assessment tool to determine their preliminary level of recognition before moving forward with the full application. Of the 266 employers that completed the pre-assessment, 42 percent did not meet the qualifications for Bell Seal certification, and 58 percent fell in one of the four recognition levels: bronze, silver, gold, and platinum. 

Anderson noted that many Indiana employers may already have the qualifications to gain Bell Seal certification. “A lot of companies within Indiana are doing great things. They’re just not being highlighted at this point,” she said.

The Bell Seal certification can be effective in attracting and retaining employees in a highly competitive job market, Anderson said.

“The Indiana Chamber of Commerce has made it no secret that employers in general are saying that mental health or substance use disorders are among the leading barriers to a sustainable workforce,” she said. “In the nonprofit world, we struggle even more to compete with for-profit businesses in offering an equitable salary and benefits.” 

Future of mental wellness in Indiana

Anderson said she envisions advocates will continue efforts to restructure the mental health system in Indiana in the coming years. “We know we’re ranked 42nd in the United States, which is not a good number to be in terms of access and quality mental health care,” she said. “We have a system that has been largely untouched since the 1960s when President Kennedy signed into law the establishment of community mental health centers.”

She noted concerns remain because recommendations from the Behavioral Health Commission was for much greater and sustainable funding than what was provided by the $100 million under Senate Bill 1. 

“We’re thankful for the funding that was given and we know there will be supplemented with federal funds,” she said. “However, that doesn’t solve our problems after two years. Advocates will band together to figure out what would be an acceptable sustainable funding source, such as a cell phone surcharge, which is how we fund 911, or alcohol or tobacco taxes because they directly correlate with mental health.

“The ultimate goal is that we get our mental health system restructured so that people are sent to appropriate places for treatment for mental illness or substance use disorder as opposed to jail or the morgue,” Anderson said. “We’ve made some really great strides in this state. We have a long way to go but the momentum is good. I hope we can keep moving forward.”

May 01

Is your nonprofit suffering the effects of secondary trauma?

By Feature, Mental Health

Local nonprofit leader stresses the importance of understanding mental wellness among employees

by Shari Finnell, editor/writer, Not-for-profit News

“Burnout.” “Compassion fatigue.” “Secondary traumatic stress.” “Vicarious trauma.” More than likely, you’re somewhat familiar with these terms, especially if you work or volunteer for an organization that supports individuals struggling with addiction, abuse, unemployment, food insecurity, homelessness, damaged relationships, or grief.

In the aftermath of the COVID-19 pandemic outbreak, the term “burnout,” in particular, gained increased attention as nonprofits disproportionately face an exodus of employees, along with an increased demand for services.

However, many people are using the terms interchangeably — which can make organizations vulnerable to other ways that various mental health conditions among their employees can undermine their mission, according to Dr. Cara Berg Raunick, the director of clinical quality at Health Care Education and Training (HCET), a nonprofit organization based in Indianapolis. Berg Raunick also is a former sexual assault nurse examiner (SANE) consultant for the Indiana Coalition to End Sexual Assault and Human Trafficking.

As leaders seek to support mental health programs, it’s important to gain a deeper understanding of each of the conditions and how they can impact an employee differently and, as a result, the organization, said Berg Raunick, who conducted extensive doctoral research on the vicarious trauma experienced among sexual assault nurse examiners.

Berg Raunick said the focus on “burnout” as a concept can be related to its perceived connection to a high voluntary turnover rate in the workforce. According to Nonprofit PR, 45 percent of nonprofit employees surveyed said that they would be seeking new employment by 2025 — which could further exacerbate disproportionately high voluntary turnover rates in the nonprofit sector.

While those concerns can be legitimate from an institutional and workforce perspective, employers also need to address the various types of secondary trauma that nonprofit and healthcare workers often face, Berg Raunick said.

“Burnout can be the easiest one to figure out why it matters,” she said. “People quit when they experience burnout, which can cost us money in training time, staff deficits, and a loss of institutional knowledge and expertise. However, unlike secondary trauma, burnout isn’t strictly trauma related. It can be caused by any challenging work scenario.

“While it certainly can be linked to working with folks who have experienced trauma, it’s important to recognize that people who experience any kind of secondary trauma have an increased risk of burnout,” she added.

In many cases, symptoms of secondary trauma — which is an umbrella term that describes what happens to people who are peripherally impacted by another person’s direct trauma — amy not be readily addressed in the workplace because they may appear to only impact the employee, Berg Raunick said.

Yet, secondary trauma can result in disconnected employees who are ineffective in supporting the organization’s mission, she noted.  According to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, symptoms of secondary trauma can include isolation, depression, anxiety, physical ailments, disassociation.

Berg Raunick stressed the importance of recognizing and addressing secondary trauma symptoms among employees — both to support employees’ overall well-being and the organization’s mission.

“In nonprofit and healthcare environments, working as a unit and supporting each other matters immensely,” she said. “It can lead to a decreased connection to patients, clients, and other team members.

“We’re losing a lot of our leaders over time to burnout,” she added. “But those who are staying may be disconnecting and losing their ability to have compassion and empathy. There’s a prevailing attitude that we should be strong, and we should be able to just carry on. We must approach not only our patients and clients and from a trauma-informed lens, but our workforce as well.”

Addressing secondary trauma in the workplace

Based on Berg Raunick’s research on vicarious trauma, which includes cognitive changes that occur with prolonged exposure to trauma, employees supporting traumatized people are likely to experience the highest levels of detrimental effects if they also have a personal history of trauma. 

However, as the research revealed, nurses without a personal history of sexual trauma but who examined sexual assault victims scored similarly in cognitive changes as obstetrics nurses who did have a personal history of sexual trauma — but did not work with sexual trauma victims in their roles. 

It’s important to create trauma-informed organizations and practices, including opportunities for self-care, in the workplace without setting the expectation that lack of resilience is a personal failure, said Berg Raunick.

“A huge part of it is learning about it, prioritizing it, and trying to create space to address it,” she said. “In some ways COVID taught us the importance of addressing it. We experienced immense trauma on so many levels, and the world slowed down for a bit.” 

Since there are many terms that have been associated with secondary trauma, understanding of the differences among them can be confusing, she noted.

“For example, compassion fatigue originated as a less stigmatized term for secondary traumatic stress, but now it is defined as a combination of secondary traumatic stress and burnout,” she said. “Compassion fatigue (as a description) makes a lot of intuitive sense. When we say compassion fatigue to someone, anyone who does any caring or any work in nonprofits, health care, or education, intuitively understands what that means.”

“With vicarious trauma, the changes aren’t pathologic,” she said. “They are normal and expected with this type of work. But while the changes themselves are normal, the effects can be harmful. We need to stress, ‘There’s nothing wrong with you. This isn’t a deficit if you’re experiencing this.”

Employers also should consider increasing awareness around the varying secondary trauma concepts as part of the onboarding process and continual employee engagement, Berg Raunick said. “By nature, most people who head into these kinds of fields have great resilience,” she said. “But it’s important to create trauma-informed organizations and practices, including opportunities for self-care, without setting the expectation that lack of resilience is a personal failure.

“A huge part of it is learning about it, prioritizing it, and trying to create space to address it,” she added. “In some ways COVID taught us the importance of addressing it. We experienced immense trauma on so many levels, and the world slowed down for a bit so that we can focus on it.”  

Ideas for practicing self-care

According to the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA), self-care tips to prevent and mitigate the impact of secondary trauma, such as those experienced by teams responding to a natural disaster.

  • Focus on the four core components of resilience: adequate sleep, good nutrition, regular physical activity, and active relaxation (e.g., yoga or meditation).
  • Get enough sleep or at least rest. This is of great importance, as it affects all other aspects of your work—your physical strength, your decision making, your temperament.
  • Drink enough fluids to stay hydrated and eat the best quality food that you can access.
  • Complete basic hygiene tasks like combing your hair, brushing your teeth, and changing clothes when possible. Wearing clean clothes can make you feel better.
  • Try to wash up, even just your hands and face, after you leave your work shift. Think of it as a symbolic “washing away” of the hardness of the day.
  • Make time to learn about the people with whom you work. Taking time for conversations will help foster feelings of positive regard toward yourself and others.
  • Engage with your fellow workers to celebrate successes and mourn sorrows as a group.
  • Take time to be alone so you can think, meditate, and rest.
  • Practice your spiritual beliefs or reach out to a faith leader for support.
  • Take time away from the work when possible. Removing yourself from the disaster area can help you remember that not every place is so troubled.
  • Try to find things to look forward to.
  • Communicate with friends and family as best you can. If you do not have Internet or cell phone access or ways to mail letters, write to loved ones anyway and send the letters later.
  • Create individual ceremonies or rituals. For example, write down something that bothers you and then burn it as a symbolic goodbye.
  • Focus your thoughts on letting go of stress or anger or on honoring the memory, depending on the situation.
Nov 14

More than a pay raise: Retaining Indiana’s nonprofit employees requires a comprehensive wellness approach

By Feature

Indiana Youth Services Association launches pilot project to address nonprofit youth workers’ challenges

Disengaged, burned out, overwhelmed. Those are the adjectives often used to describe nonprofit employees in today’s work environment.

According to the Society for Human Resource Management, the voluntary nonprofit employer turnover rate is at a historic high — outpacing the turnover rate in the overall labor market. In 2022, the nonprofit industry had a turnover rate of 19 percent, compared to 12 percent for the overall labor market.

The challenge of retaining and recruiting nonprofit employees in a highly competitive labor market also comes at a time when nonprofit organizations are dealing with increased demands for services, changes in fundraising, and higher costs driven by inflation.

However, the well-being of nonprofit employees must take a priority, according to David Westenberger, CEO, Indiana Youth Services Association (IYSA), a statewide association of 30 Youth Service Bureaus in about 70 counties.

“Within our field, we haven’t done a very good job of taking care of our own people doing the work,” said Westenberger, who has been raising awareness about the need for nonprofit employers to support their employees beyond pay raises and title changes.  “In the field of youth work and social services, people in the field over a long period of time eventually mirror the population they serve more than retain the overall wellness and health that they had early on.”

Without adequate insights about the challenges nonprofit employees face and a comprehensive approach to address them, nonprofit organizations could be undermining their ability to achieve their mission, Westenberger said.

A comprehensive approach to employee wellness

Earlier this year, Westenberger and the IYSA team, launched a pilot project that addresses the overall wellness of nonprofit youth workers. The framework for the project includes the Eight Dimensions of Wellness outlined by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Administration (SAMHSA) and insights from ACEs (adverse child experiences) training.

During each year of the three-year initiative, representatives from four Youth Service Bureau organizations undergo monthly training that addresses one of SAMHSA’s eight dimensions of wellness — emotional, occupational, social, financial, environmental, physical, spiritual, and intellectual. Each month, participants hear from experts in each of the eight fields reflected in the dimensions of well-being. The also collaborate on supportive strategies and ideas that are later integrated in their workplace employee programs.

IYSA provides the participating organizations with stipends to support the initiatives that help their staff members grow in each dimension.

“For emotional well-being, one of the organizations contracted with a local agency to offer mental health counseling services for their staff,” Westenberger said. Other proposals included providing employees with gym memberships, implementing walking meetings, giving time for employees to be active during the day, and serving nutritious food during meetings.  

The participants, who regularly report on their progress in implementing employee programs around the eight dimensions, will serve as mentors to the other eight organizations that will undergo training in 2023 and 2024.

Addressing a cycle of trauma

The IYSA pilot project follows extensive research that revealed numerous challenges for nonprofit workers in the field of youth services.

The association, which also supports numerous youth-focused initiatives, including increasing awareness about human trafficking, ACEs (adverse childhood experiences), medical amnesty related to underage drinking, launched surveys to gain insights about the challenges faced by youth workers on a day-to-day basis.

A financial analysis revealed that 78 percent of survey respondents experience moderate to significant financial stress, 67 percent are in debt, and 46 percent hadn’t save enough to cover an emergency. It also revealed that employees spend an average of 1.1 hours dealing with their personal finances while at work.

A 2022 IYSA survey related to the eight dimensions of health revealed the following:

  • 40 percent of survey respondents rated their emotional wellness as fair, poor, or very poor.
  • 36 percent rated the quality of emotional wellness support from their organization as poor or fair.
  • 43 percent rated their physical wellness as fair, poor, or very poor.
  • 29 percent rated the physical wellness support programs from their organization as fair or poor.
  • 64 percent rated their financial wellness as fair, poor, or very poor.

Survey respondents who rated their organizations as supportive with emotional wellness provided these comments about their employers:

  • “I am always taken care of and am constantly being checked up on to see if I am okay.”
  • “My employer is understanding and willing to listen and support and encourages us to take care of our minds as well as our bodies.”
  • “The employer does check-ins on staff to see how well we are doing or if we have any questions about programming or suggestions.”
  • “We can take a quick break if we are overwhelmed.”

Some suggestions provided by the survey respondents included providing employees with a quiet place so that they can relax for a minute, being supportive and listening to concerns, counseling, mental health check-ins, and an easily accessible platform for scheduling counseling and therapy.

Westenberger said that the surveys revealed the need to engage in a more comprehensive wellness strategy.

“In the field of youth work and social services, we have employees who, emotionally and financially, mirror the population they’re serving,” he said. “About 60 percent of the people working in the youth services field have their own trauma because they entered the field because of their childhood experiences. They have a passion to make things better for young people — to change the system and circumstances for children.”

A history of childhood trauma coupled with the demands of working with a traumatized population during pandemic is detrimental for many youth workers, Westenberger said.

“Like most other things, the pandemic brought to the forefront how much secondary trauma there is,” Westenberger said. “So, you’ve got people with high ACE scores where it is part of their intrinsic drive to do the work. And they’re working with populations who are experiencing high levels of abuse and neglect.

“We are asking, ‘What are some of the things in your workplace culture that could change to support employees and how can you provide resources to support them?’,” he added.

Aug 29

Local nonprofit expands camp experience to address youth mental health needs

By Feature

JCC Indianapolis’ CEO Eric H. Koehler addresses gaps with support from philanthropic donors

by Shari Finnell, editor/writer, Not-for-profit News

As with most executive leaders assuming a new role, Eric H. Koehler assessed opportunities for growth when he arrived at JCC Indianapolis in 2017. One of the areas he identified was the need for mental health and related support services for the youth that the organization had been serving for decades.

“While we’re certainly running a good program, I thought we could run an excellent program by providing additional mental, emotional and social well-being support,” said Koehler, who had previously worked in numerous JCC leadership positions, including as CEO of the JCC in Stamford, Conn. “Everyone has different abilities and needs based on where they are, but we didn’t have the capacity — the deep bench that we really needed to provide that additional support.

Koehler outlined a plan to add mental health support to the campers served by the organization’s programs and started reaching out to foundations for funding support.

Although COVID-19 disrupted the timeline of the programming, the organization was able to hire a mental health and behavioral coordinator and inclusion support specialists to work at its camp programs in 2022. The hires were made possible with a gift from the Glick Foundation, and gifts from the Adams, Bell, Cotlar and Koppel families.

With its expanded offerings under the pilot program, the JCC Indianapolis joins an increasing number of nonprofit organizations that are seeking ways to support mental health needs among youth through their regular programs. 

These programs come at a time when mental health challenges among youth are reaching a crisis level, as described in a recent article published by the American Psychological Association (APA). Statistics show that demand for mental health support is far outpacing available resources.

According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), one out of every five children in the United States had a mental health disorder prior to the COVID-19 outbreak. However, only about 20 percent of the children identified were receiving care from a mental health provider. 

Experts expect those numbers to continue to rise because of children’s experiences with trauma, disruptions and isolation caused by the pandemic. 

About 71 percent of parents responding to a national survey conducted by Ann & Robert H. Lurie Children’s Hospital of Chicago said that the pandemic had taken a toll on their child’s mental health. Also, the CDC reported that emergency room visits related to mental health increased 24 percent for children ages 5 to 11 in 2020 and by 31 percent among youth ages 12 to 17, compared to 2019.

Introducing a new camp program

After five years of planning and pursuing funding, and navigating the disruptions caused by COVID-19, the JCC Indianapolis hosted its 2022 camp season with several noticeable changes. In addition to the MESH (Mental, Emotional and Social Health) services and peer training delivered by the new staff members, the ratio of campers to staffers and group sizes were smaller and programming was calmer, Koehler said.

In previous years, JCC Indianapolis would host the vast majority, if not all, of the families that registered for camp. This year, there was a wait list because of the desire to keep the groups small.

“That’s something we learned. If we’re going to provide a high-quality summer experience for everyone who’s involved, we can’t just provide bulk childcare,” Koehler said. “We never capped the number of campers like we did this summer.”

Koehler said there also was a noticeable difference in the tenor of the program, which offered quiet zones for overstimulated campers, in comparison to camps in previous years. For instance, the number of programs like an annual lip sync contest, which included high-energy singing and dancing, were reduced in favor of more subdued activities.

“The tone was a lot lower and calmer, which led to a more pleasant experience,” said Koehler, who anticipates that the differences in the camp program will result in higher retention among campers and counselors.

Evolving the camp experience

According to the American Camp Association, camp programs, policies and practices that incorporate MESH-focused services and training can improve the camp experience for participants by building resiliency, self-esteem and self-confidence. As a result, they also can minimize challenges for camp counselors.

When pursuing a MESH focus for JCC Indianapolis, Koehler was able to draw on his experiences in leadership roles at other JCC’s in Virginia, Connecticut and Massachusetts. 

In one JCC program, the organization offered special early childhood programs for children with serious needs from birth. The team partnered with specialists and state and county staff members to supplement their offerings. After a child turned three, the JCC would help place them in early childhood programs, Koehler said. “These were kids who had very significant needs. Some had communication issues or difficulty walking,” he said. “Our goal was to get them from point A to point B. Typically, when those children completed our program, they had significant growth so we were able to include them in our early childhood programs.”

At another JCC, the team provided a day camp program for children on the autism spectrum.  “We focused on social skills learning in the morning and in the afternoon matriculated the children into the broader camp to learn how to improve their communication skills,” Koehler said. 

While the work involved in securing the funding and establishing the MESH focus at JCC Indianapolis was challenging, Koehler said, the effort was worth it.

It’s very rewarding to be able to do this for our community, families, and staff,” he said.

Mar 21

Employers must promote a culture of mental health, local experts say

By Feature

by Shari Finnell, editor/writer, Not-for-profit News

Whether COVID-19 rates continue to decline or experience periodic surges, the need to proactively implement comprehensive mental health solutions in the workplace will persist in the coming years, according to local mental health experts.

Employers must recognize the importance of addressing mental health among their employees in the wake of job losses, occupational stress caused by long work hours, and illness and death, said Kimble L. Richardson, a licensed mental health counselor and manager of business development for Community Health Network, Behavioral Health.

“Many people are still a bit traumatized by what happened,” said Richardson, who led emergency response efforts throughout Marion County and surrounding counties as the coordinator of the Resilience and Emotional Support Team (REST). “We initially had to put our emotions on the back burner so that we could just make it through. We need to encourage people to have discussions about mental health being important. It will continue to be important, hopefully ad infinitum, but especially at an intense level for the next several years.”

Jennifer Stansbury Miller, program manager of the Be Well Crisis Helpline, which was launched by Mental Health of America (MHAI) in partnership with the state of Indiana’s Family Social Services and Administration, said that there are no immediate plans to discontinue the helpline, which was implemented in response to the pandemic.

As of March 16, the helpline, which can be accessed by dialing 211, had received 34,561 calls since July of 2020, when it was introduced, and continues to average a significant number of calls daily. During February of 2021, the center received 1,713 calls. In February of 2022, they fielded more than 2,000 calls — an increase of 20.66 percent, Stansbury Miller said.

The spike in numbers can be attributed to numerous reasons, including word-of-mouth about the helpline, increasing awareness or a gap in mental health providers throughout the state, Stansbury Miller said.

“What we have seen overall in the profession is an increase in need for mental health solutions,” Stansbury Miller said. “And when you look at mental health, by definition, it’s emotional and psychological well-being. It’s not necessarily a mental illness. Somebody could just be having a bad day and still need support.”

Similar patterns on mental health have emerged nationally, according to the 2021 Mental Health at Work Report, released by Mind Share Partners in partnership with Qualtrics and ServiceNow. The report, which was a follow up to a report released in 2019, revealed:

  • More employees left their jobs for mental health reasons, including those impacted by workplace factors like being overwhelmed with workload. About 68 percent of Millennials and 81 percent of Gen Zers reported leaving their positions for mental health reasons, up from 50 percent 75 percent respectively in 2019.
  • 91 percent of survey respondents believed that a company’s culture should support mental health, up from 86 percent in 2019.
  • 76 percent of respondents reported at least one symptom of a mental health condition in the past year, up from 59 percent in 2019.
  • C-level and executive-level respondents were more likely to report at least one mental health symptom than other respondents.

Shift in thinking about mental health

While there has been an increasing awareness about the need for mental health solutions, particularly in the wake of the pandemic, significant progress still needs to be made, Stansbury Miller said.

Employers will need to examine their workplace policies as well as increase awareness about the resources that are available, Stansbury Miller said. “In the space of nonprofit employees, public service providers, and companies overall, companies have a role to play in their employees’ resilience and mental health; their well-being overall,” she added.

Richardson said that employers need to shift their thinking about mental health, integrating it as a core part of the organization’s overall health policy.

“The importance of mental health is going to stick around,” he said. “If you don’t pay attention to it, it will show itself to you and it will ask you to pay attention to it — either in losing your staff or having to care for your staff in ways that are expensive. You don’t want your staff to have heart attacks or heart surgery.”

Richardson said employers can take both proactive and reactive approaches to introducing mental health solutions into the workplace, including introducing regular educational sessions on topics like building resilience and other resources tailored to the needs of their employees.

Stansbury Miller also said that employers should examine the workplace culture. “Self-care of the individual at work is everybody’s responsibility,” she said. If emails are going 24/7 after work hours, that is something to look at. It’s important to encourage those at the top to begin a culture of self-care and resilience. For example, make it a policy that there are no emails after a certain time. That’s something small that can make a difference to ensure employees don’t feel tethered to work and can get out and prioritize their mental well-being.”

Stansbury Miller also said that employers can encourage employees to take time off work, engage in self care, and use the benefits offered in the organization’s Employee Assistance Program, which provides confidential mental health services.

In addition to the 24/7 Be Well Crisis Helpline, employers and employees also can explore assessments and resources on mental health, wellness, substance use and recovery at www.bewellindiana.org.

“It’s been hard,” Stansbury Miller said. “As we’re coming off, hopefully, from COVID, we’re going to create these boundaries and fully address the mental health concerns we have seen during the past two years in the state. Folks can focus on improving their emotional well-being, get outside and engage in community, and build the resilience they need.”