In recent years, the threat to the well-being and future life outcomes of our youngest citizens has been growing in complexity and severity. Nationally, over the past 10 years, Canada has witnessed a significant rise in youth mental health issues. In addition, anxiety and isolation caused by COVID-19 have provided an environment for a perfect storm of mental health issues. Experts have been identifying a spike in a wide range of mental health issues and self-harming behaviour among youth, expressing that this trend will continue. For most, onset mental health disorders occur during childhood, adolescence, and young adulthood, and are associated with post-educational and employment outcomes (Canadian Institute for Health Information, 2015). To flatten this upward curve, we must be proactive in getting ahead of it. IMPACT Society a not-for-profit based in Calgary, Alberta, is doing just that, offering programs to support the mental, emotional, and behavioural health of our youth.
Since its founding in 1994, IMPACT has used an evidence-based educational process to deliver its programs. The oversight of these programs is led by a curriculum development team, with the support of a key research partner, Dr. Wayne Hammond of Flourishing Life Technologies, and a curriculum advisory team consisting of psychologists, educators, parents, and students. The programs enable every student’s strengths and social/emotional health to be evaluated and reported to them and their system of support, using the Flourishing Life Questionnaire, which provides quantifiable metrics, measured across 30 factors of psycho-social well-being.
IMPACT’s flagship offering, entitled HEROES, has been provided to over 200,000 children, youth, and caregivers in Alberta, across Canada, and internationally. This original HEROES program focuses on teaching students to live from their strengths to develop confidence, character, integrity, and purpose. This program was revised and digitized in 2020 with the support of various donors, most notably the Calgary Flames Foundation.
HEROES 2 follows the same evidence-based educational process to equip youth to lead from their strengths, and ultimately make a positive impact in their peer groups and communities by participation in a Capstone project. Students will develop a community initiative, which will be implemented and graded by the educator and/or program facilitators, with the outcomes being increased mental health, capacity to flourish, and strengthened citizenship. Following overwhelmingly positive feedback from educators and students utilizing the upgraded HEROES program, it became clear that an enhanced, digitized HEROES 2 platform was required.
Viewpoint Foundation is proud to lead this latest initiative to upgrade the HEROES 2 curriculum. We are working with other funders to ensure that all youth can access the resources they need to discover the heroes within themselves!
Please reach out to learn more about IMPACT Society and join us as a partner!