Internships

Nana's Children Mental Health Foundation, Inc. collaborates with local universities to provide a practicum training site for masters and doctoral candidates in the field of clinical psychology. Our extraordinary team of registered play therapists (below) provides a learning environment that empowers the interns and teaches them skills necessary to be successful in their chosen careers. Interns learn to transcribe clinical notes, establish treatment plans, document research data, and provide testing and evaluation.

To provide teacher training on ways to reach children with emotional and behavioral dificulties (EBD) as to maximize their learning capabilities.

Research

An integral part of the Nana's Children model program is research. The effectiveness of play therapy has been recorded and documented for over 50 years, and yet the correlation between play therapy and academic achievement is one that must be explored and developed. With that in mind, Nana's Children implemented the Boxall Profile, a research study that incorporates teachers' knowledge of their students and playroom activities to determine treatment and a "point of entry" into a child’s mental health needs. (see nurturegroups.com). Dr. William Jenkins, PhD, RPT-S is the Director of Research for Nana’s Children and brings over 25 years of experience to Nana’s Team.

Volunteerism

Nana's Children and the Elementary Schools it serves share a common goal and interest… to help homeless children become emotionally sound and achieve academically. To that end, we encourage volunteers to contact their elementary schools for mentoring and tutoring opportunities. You can "touch one child’s heart" simply by being there for them.