Cree kids become recording artists talking about mental health, friendship and culture

The violence prevention program Choose to Change pairs cognitive behavioral therapy with intensive mentoring for high-risk Chicago teens, resulting in participants being 31% less likely to be arrested than their peers who did not participate in the program.

Fiddler Dennis Stroughmatt plays French Creole music, sings, and speaks in Missouri French to raise awareness about the language and culture no longer widely practiced in the region.

Sources of Strength is a student-led mental health prevention program operating in about 35 Maine middle and high schools, coordinated by NAMI Maine and the state CDC. The program trains peer leaders to act as "connectors" who listen to struggling classmates and guide them to trusted adults before problems escalate. Students report that peer support makes it easier to discuss struggles with someone experiencing similar pressures.

After Hurricanes Irma and Maria devastated Puerto Rico in 2017, three music therapists from Fundación Música y País (Music and Country Foundation) traveled to over 20 shelters for children in foster care, providing music therapy. The foundation expanded this work during the pandemic and continues to advocate for more professional music therapy services in Puerto Rico. Evidence suggests music therapy helps participants relax, eases feelings of anxiety and even helps some youth come out of their shells and become more expressive.

In the early 2000s, Minnesota implemented a systematic approach to address inadequate mental health access for students by contracting with outside agencies to place licensed mental health providers directly in public schools. The state expanded funding from $4.7 million in 2008 to over $20 million today, growing from therapists in just five schools to now serving 82% of the state's public school districts.

Nuci’s Space aims to prevent suicide by providing a safe space for people of all ages, particularly youth, to connect and play music. They also offer affordable practice spaces and mental and physical health care services for participants, including affordable counseling.

Crossing Borders Music is a group of classically-trained Western musicians who perform music from Haitian, Palestinian, Rohingya, Native American and other marginalized communities via free concerts held in libraries, cultural centers and university spaces. The goal is to not only showcase diverse cultures and musical traditions, but to build a deeper understanding of immigrants and other communities that are often overlooked. The group reaches about 10,000 people in-person and online each year, and hosted 27 free concerts in 2024.

Facing a youth mental health crisis, some schools are using digital screening tools like BIMAS-2 and DESSA to identify students needing behavioral support. Districts in Green Bay and Alexandria report positive results, but widespread adoption meets resistance due to costs, parent concerns, and limited capacity for follow-up support.

Several Louisville organizations are addressing mental health care accessibility for youth of color by offering therapy in community spaces like barbershops, libraries, and other familiar environments. This approach aims to reduce stigma and has also made mental health care more accessible by eliminating barriers such as cost and location. Many youths who had participated in the therapy programs reported feeling more open to discussing their mental health.

Teenspace is a free online therapy program that offers video and text-based mental health support. Nearly 7,000 teens have signed up for the program so far, and 65% of them have reported an improvement in their mental health since connecting to a licensed therapist through the platform.