SAMHSA, the federal Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration, is very interested in ensuring that individuals and families suffering from substance abuse and mental health problems have the very best care that our professions can offer. They have observed that prevention and treatment interventions proven to work through social science or medical research are often not implemented immediately. Proven interventions get stuck in the Ivy Tower. SAMHSA wants to close this gap and recognize providers who are offering high-quality, up-to-date, research-based, effective services. Morrison received high marks in all of these areas.

We won the Science to Service Award in the Mental Health Promotion category for our implementation of the Incredible Years, a prevention and intervention program for preschool children at risk for developing severe behavioral and aggressive problems.

The Program includes parent groups to help parents understand and respond positively to their children’s needs and children’s social skills groups to help young children with social skills, making friends, understanding feelings, solving problems, and doing their best in school, preschool or child care. Puppets, Wally and Molly, come to group to help children learn these life lessons.

We implemented enthusiastically, achieved positive outcomes similar to the ones documented in the original research, and received many inspirational compliments from parents about how the Incredible Years changed their lives.

We could not have won this award without the involvement of 57 therapists who facilitated the Parent and Child groups, the support of Carolyn Webster-Stratton who developed the Incredible Years in Seattle, the participation of staff and Directors from numerous child care centers and Head Start centers and our Morrison Program Evaluation team, and the support of our funders primarily, SAMHSA in the early years and later the City of Portland Children’s Investment Fund. Multnomah County and Washington County have also helped us.