Equitable Community Development – Southwest Michigan Journalism Collaborative (SWMJC)

How Kalamazoo racial segregation fueled today’s home affordability problem

The massive white and middle-class flight out of the Northside and the neighborhood‘s economic decline was no accident. It was a result of public and private policies — including racially restrictive housing covenants, steering and redlining — explicitly designed to keep Black residents out of white neighborhoods and segregate Kalamazoo housing by race, all the while starving Black neighborhoods of resources.

Yes, housing really is more unaffordable in Kalamazoo — here’s why

Hatfield is looking around Kalamazoo County for affordability, hoping to stay in Kalamazoo Public Schools, without sacrificing too much in areas like safety. She scours Zillow and other websites to find homes for sale before they disappear. They often go quickly, she said. It’s a common tale in Kalamazoo County. Incomes have risen 19% since 2019 — but housing prices are up 46%. Finding housing that doesn’t break the bank used to be a problem for low-income folks. Now, even households with a decent salary are in a pinch.

The ‘Covid Cohort’: How the ‘pandemic skip’ is affecting young adults

Pandemic restrictions, social isolation and missed opportunities for support in planning their futures, layered on top of the economic precariousness and social turmoil of recent years, left many in the Covid Cohort more emotionally uncertain and less prepared for adulthood than previous generations, professionals and parents say.

Youth Mental Health series explores solutions for teens in crisis

“Anxiety will take as much room as you give it,” says Patti Criswell, who has spent her career listening to and helping young people through mental health struggles. In a video produced by Public Media Network, Criswell offers advice for parents of anxious teens and gives young people tips for managing anxiety and depression.

Suicide in general is a very impulsive act, especially for teens

The nation’s mental health crisis can become increasingly fatal as firearms become more accessible, data shows. Michigan’s new gun safety laws and local health care-led initiatives are intended to help before that statistic hits Kalamazoo County.

“El suicidio en general es un acto muy impulsivo, especialmente para los adolescentes.”que encuentran ayuda

El creciente acceso a armas de fuego en EE.UU. está intensificando la crisis de salud mental entre los adolescentes, un grupo especialmente vulnerable a decisiones impulsivas. En Michigan, nuevas leyes de seguridad y programas comunitarios buscan abordar el problema, pero el riesgo sigue siendo alto.

As youth struggle with mental health, treatment using horses is helping

A counselor trained in equine-assisted therapy, Federinko says working with horses can provide an avenue for building self-esteem and confidence; for teaching problem-solving skills, impulse control, and emotional awareness; and for helping kids – as well as adults — learn how to build trust and empathy.

Uncovering Adverse Childhood Experiences and trauma-informed care intervention helps children thrive

The ACE scoring method is illuminating the relationship between stresses that children face that lead to public health problems later in life and the importance of preventing ACEs before they happen, a cause being promoted by a number of organizations across the region.

Adolescentes en crisis mental encuentran alivio en musicoterapia

Los musicoterapeutas utilizan la música para lograr objetivos no musicales específicos para cada paciente, dice Deanna Bush, instructora y coordinadora de experiencias clínicas estudiantiles en el programa de musicoterapia de WMU. Durante una clase de improvisación musical de verano, rodeada de una selección de instrumentos que iban desde sonajeros con cuentas hasta tubanos similares a bongós, Bush instruyó a dos estudiantes para que representaran una discusión utilizando xilófonos de madera en miniatura. Luego, los estudiantes discutieron lo que habían sentido durante el combate musical.

As teens experience mental health crisis, music therapy is one way they are finding help

Music therapists use music to achieve non-musical, patient-specific goals, says Deanna Bush, instructor and coordinator of student clinical experiences in the WMU music therapy program. During a summer music improvisation class, surrounded by a selection of instruments ranging from beaded shakers to bongo-like tubanos, Bush instructed two students to depict an argument using miniature wooden xylophones. Afterward, the students discussed what they felt during the musical combat.

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