Summer 2013

Summer Issue 2013
All Star News
Stars Behavioral
Health Group
Partnering with People for Positive Change
RFP Victories Bring New Business
to Valley Star
Valley Star Children and Family Services celebrated its tenth
year in business this year by winning two new contracts with the
County of San Bernardino. Valley Star was awarded a contract
for a Family Resource Center in addition to another contract to
provide services to African-American children and their parents
in the community.
The Valley Star Family Resource Center (FRC) will address
prevention and early intervention needs of families, including
at-risk children, TAY, and adults from communities with
underserved cultural groups, high poverty or high rates of
violence. The center will operate full time at Valley Star’s
existing D Street site in San Bernardino and is projected
to serve a minimum of 2,500 individuals annually. The
whole space is getting a new look to jazz it up for all this
activity, and staff is working on curriculum development
and community outreach. Supervisor Sherie Park will be
overseeing the FRC program.
The newly won Promoting Resilience in African-American
Children services (PRAAC) contract provides services to
children ages 5-11 and their families in the city of San
Bernardino’s African-American communities. This program
will build upon community members’ strengths and experience
to provide services to San Bernardino schools and the
community using curriculum and programming tailored to the
needs of African-American youth and families. The program
includes parenting skills training using the Effective Black
Parenting Program. The contract will begin in September, and
Wandalyn Lane, newly appointed as IYRT and PRAAC Program
Manager, will be leading this effort.
Lights, Camera, Action!
SBHG Shoots Three New Corporate Videos
Kent Dunlap, Senior VP
and COO, gets a make-up
retouch before filming.
Ontson Placide, TEAMMATES
Administrator, acts as an MC
for the videos.
A professional video team has been working with SBHG
to develop three different videos to be used in employee
orientation and training. One video is about the company’s
mission statement and core values and can be viewed on
the home page of the new SharePoint Intranet site. Click
here to view it. Another that is also for New Employee
Orientation will introduce new hires to the company. The
third video explains our 401K benefits and the Employee
Stock Ownership Plan (ESOP) and is designed to be viewed
by new employees after their first 90 days, when they
become eligible for these benefits.
At the Star View Community Services summer picnic, the guys
from Team S at Long Beach lived up to their name. They are,
from left: Corrdero Taylor, MHS II; Juan Mejia, MHSI; Joe Khawaja,
Supervisor; and Willie Langie, Parent Advocate. For more picnic
pictures, see page 6.
The
Executive’s
Corner
Peter Zucker, Ph.D.
President and CEO
Dear Stars Staff,
I’m pleased to share a brief update as we head into the
heart of summer. There are so many great things to report.
As mentioned on the previous page, Valley Star has won
two new contracts to begin in San Bernardino County in
the 2013 fiscal year (remember that the fiscal year runs
from July to June). The first is a Family Resource Center,
designed to provide a range of holistic and family-based
resources and educational programs to children, youth, and
adult community members. We were also selected to begin
a new program on Resilience Promotion in African-American
children. This program will provide universal and selective
mental health, educational, and mentoring within San
Bernardino schools and the community using curriculum
and programming tailored to the needs of African-American
youth and families. It is a great honor to have been selected
as the provider for both new programs.
Our three non-public schools all produced fully accredited
high-school graduates. Stars HS had nine graduates, Valley
Star had seven, and the Adolescent Center (South Bay HS)
had two. Because our three schools are all fully accredited
by WASC (Western Association of Schools and Colleges),
the High School graduation degrees they award are fully
recognized throughout the higher education world (and
qualify for application to the UC system). And all of our
graduates passed the California state exit exams! Between
Kent and myself, we attended all three graduations, and we
could not have been prouder of our students, their families,
and our highly competent staff.
Starlight and Stars Community Services programs were
ranked as one of the “best places to work in the Bay Area” by
the San Jose Mercury News. This is the second year in a row
that Starlight has won this distinction and the first year for
Stars. (See the adjacent page for more about Starlight).
For our programs, the core practice all service staff will
learn in 2013/2014 is the Wellness proficiency pathway.
This is an approach to integrate physical health and
wellness into a holistic approach to behavioral health care,
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and includes client-driven Wellness Recovery Action Plans
(WRAP) and Consumer Wellness Information Sheets.
Also, September is Suicide Prevention Month in the USA.
I’m sorry to report that suicide is fast becoming a national
public health crisis, with more people dying by suicide than
motor vehicle accidents (close to 35,000 last year). Yet,
there are many proven programs and practices that are
highly effective at addressing the underlying cause of this
behavior. Look for a special communication package from
SBHG to all staff on this important public health concern.
I am sad and happy to recognize the retirement of our LAbased Regional Administrator Kathy Millett. After having
worked for the SBHG organization for the greater part of the
last 20 years, she will be re-locating to a beautiful home on
a lake in Reno, Nevada. Kathy had the gift of great detail
and warm work relationships, a wonderful combination.
We’re gonna miss you a lot, Kathy!
Finally, I’ve been delighted to see how well all of our
programs have done at recognizing and making use of
SBHG’s 25th anniversary to celebrate our accomplishments,
build pride in our agencies and jobs, and lead the
way to continue our ground-breaking activities and
accomplishments into the next 25 years.
Happy Trails!
Dr. Peter Zucker, President and CEO
“Sailing Takes me Away….”
TAY Hot Spot Peer Mentors joined Hot Spot members at sailing
lessons in Long Beach. Mentors are, from left, Lorne Wood,
Meshay Broadnax, and Derek Lewis.
There’s something about being out on the water that refreshes
the soul, so it’s no surprise that 13 peer mentors and TAY
from the Hot Spot in Carson took advantage of complimentary
sailing lessons offered through an arrangement with Shoreline
Yacht Club in Long Beach and the City of Long Beach.
Starlight Lives up to its Name
Wikipedia’s definition of “Starlight” is “light emitted by stars.”
Starlight Community Services in San Jose certainly emits light
into the community through its numerous programs, and it
definitely has its share of “stars.” These stars have also had a
busy few months.
Starlight launched its new TEAMMATES Wraparound program
earlier this year and is positioned to be the provider of choice
to Wraparound TAY youth in the county. TEAMMATES’ families
attended their first Spring Fling for juvenile justice children with
150 people in attendance.
the “Best Places to Work in the Bay Area”. They were ranked
26th out of 95 companies for mid-sized companies. Stars and
Starlight were also included in a special article about diversity
in the workplace.
Lastly, Starlight recently held an Art Expo to showcase client
artwork and also turned the event into an opportunity to
show off talent, with dance performers, activity tables, and
art projects organized for each table. Hilary Martin, Center
Coordinator, reports that most of the families stayed well after
the prizes were given out to enjoy the food and activities.
As Dr. Zucker mentioned in his message, in June, the Bay Area
News Group (publisher of the San Jose Mercury News and
the Contra Costa Times) named Starlight and Stars among
The Aztec calendar and Day of the Dead drawing was
created by a 17-year-old male in Starlight’s REACH
program, and it was the overall art show winner.
Relaxing after all the planning involved with the Art
Expo are, from left, Jessica Tang, School-based Services
Supervisor; Jamieko Gruenloh, TEAMMATES Program
Facilitator, and Hilary Martin, Center Coordinator.
The skull with tentacles was drawn by a 15-year-old girl
who won first place for her age group. She was also the
artist whose “tiger” drawing was featured on SBHG’s
holiday card last year.
Speaking of Stars and all things silver, have you seen what the
Starlight staff did to Regional QA Director Brian Wagner’s office
while he was away for the birth of his child?
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Musical Chairs in the Desert
See if you can follow this: Steve Albrecht, Regional Administrator
for the East Region which includes San Bernardino and Riverside
Counties, will take Kathy Millett’s place as the Regional
Administrator for the South Region when she retires. Rebecca
Ott has already assumed Steve’s previous Administrator
role for Oasis Rehabilitation Center in Indio. Roberto Lopez
was promoted from his Quality Assurance manager position
and is now Oasis Community Services’ Center Director. And
Elsie Barton, hired last spring as Administrator of the STAY,
Valley Star’s Crisis Residential Treatment Center (CRT) in San
Bernardino, is now also overseeing Valley Star Community
Services’ San Bernardino Center. And, we will soon be
announcing a new Regional Administrator for the East Region.
Yes, the desert wind is full of changes, but these are all good.
In addition, the very capable Elsie Barton has been running
a full (or nearly full) CRT since March (see Legacy story from
one of their first residents on the adjacent page) and is now
also overseeing Valley Star Community Services and its two
new programs. Meanwhile, Roberto Lopez is overseeing an
expansion of the Department of Rehabilitation’s vocational
program in a new facility in Indio and will soon be opening our
4th Peer Support and Recovery Center (PSRC) site, to be located
in the Palm Springs area.
Oasis celebrated the opening of a new peer support and resource
center in Banning. Pictured in the front row, from left, are:
Adaobi Nkwocha, Mentor; Steve Albrecht, Regional Administrator;
Angelica Camacho, Coach; Patsy Ramirez, Program Coordinator;
Mayra Hernandez (county staff), Mary Kornele, Curtis Carrasco
(Peer) and Roberto Lopez, Center Director. In the back row are
Tonya Merget, Peer Mentor, and Gregory Bryant, Peer Mentor.
Whew! If you digested all that, you are ready for the test.
Rebecca Ott, APRN, joined Oasis
Rehabilitation Center as the new
Administrator last spring. Rebecca
comes to Oasis from Mid-Plains Center
for Behavioral Health in Nebraska
where she was the Program Director
for a program that was the equivalent
of our Oasis OCS and PHF combined.
Rebecca holds a Master’s of Science
degree in Nursing and is working on
her Doctorate in Nursing Practice.
Oasis Rehabilitation Center celebrated no injuries in the month
of June with an ice cream party.
CMHACY Conference in Monterey Showcases Stars
Last May, several people attended the California Mental Health
Advocates for Children (CMHACY) workshops and conference
in the Monterey area, including a group from the Inter-Agency
Youth Resiliency Team (IYRT) program in San Bernardino
and some peer mentors from the TAY Hot Spot in Carson.
Wandalyn Lane, IYRT and PRAAC Program Manager, presented
the successful IYRT program that has more than 40 “mentor
matches” to date. Wayne Munchel, TAY Services Director,
and Coral Huntsman, Clinical Training Specialist, also led a
presentation, working with Lorne Wood and Derek Lewis, Peer
Mentors at the TAY Hot Spot in Carson.
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Mary Jane Gross, our company’s founder (now retired) and
CMHACY board member, was also there, and was impressed
with the presentations. “The presentation on our TAY Hot
Spot was OUTSTANDING,” she wrote the team. “Everyone was
so impressed … and wanted to hear more and learn more
on how to do this wonderful service…. It was my crowning
glory to hear Lorne tell his story of being a client of SVCS and
TEAMMATES, with Coral and Kenny (Langie) as his therapists,
and now being our staff member and colleague in delivering
excellent services to youth.”
Hot Spot Talent is HOT
Young adults performed at a recent talent show at the TAY Hot
Spot in Carson, with an array of numbers ranging from a trio of
MC/comics and rappers to a full band and poetry reading. “I’m
so glad that everyone enjoyed the performance. It was a blast
being a small part of it, and I can’t wait to do it again,” said Matt
Wilczynski, President, HRA Studios and Foundation, and organizer
of the event. “My next course of action is to record the original
song that the band performed, and perhaps one of the poems as a
spoken word piece.”
Tonya Wang, TAY Group Coordinator, all the TAY Hot Spot peer
mentors, Wayne Munchel, TAY Services Director, and Dr. Peter
Zucker, President and CEO, were also instrumental in helping these
young stars find a home for their talents and voices.
To hear a song composed and recorded by the TAY Hot Spot band,
click here.
Trauma Intervention Convention
CLIENT PROFILE –
Tiara will be awarded a $100 stipend for
this quarter’s winning story.
Hello, my name is Tiara; I was the second resident
to participate in The STAY Program when it opened.
When I came in to the program I was lost, depressed,
sad, and didn’t have any goals. I lost all my dreams,
my mind and my patience. I didn’t know exactly
what The STAY needed or required out of me. I
started going to all the groups required for my
wellness, even when I didn’t want to go. As days
came and I participated more in the groups I started
to realize that WRAP (Wellness Recovery Action Plan)
was helping me cope, deal with my feelings and
deal with my depression. WRAP progressively started
helping me get my goals back that I once had.
Some of my goals while at The STAY were: school,
getting my high school diploma, housing placement,
finding a job (just around the corner), and getting
myself well. Now that I am ready to transition out,
and with the help of staff, I have enrolled into an
Adult educational school, started the process of
getting my high school diploma, found housing that
was able to fit my needs, and get the wellness that
I needed to be back on track to cope daily with
anything that came my way.
As my time with The STAY is coming to a close I
am excited to move on with tools in my tool chest,
further my education to help me get a good job, and
continue to use my wellness tools whenever I feel
I’m having a bad day. My goals are to give back to
the STAY and help young my peers cope with their
feelings, encourage those around me and touch
those through my words and my progression.
The Stars Training Academy organized a Trauma Intervention Convention
last May at a country club in Seal Beach, and it was well-attended by county
workers, other providers, and some Stars staff who work with children and TAY.
I want to thank everyone: the staff, therapist, and
management for your continuous encouragement
and reminding me that I can go as far as I can see.
I am a success story, because I am not the same
person I came in as. You never know how much you
will miss this place until your time is up!!!!! Make
every moment count, because this is your life and
your wellness depends on it!
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SVCS Staff Enjoy a
Since the company’s 25th anniversary year was the theme
for this year’s picnic, school-based Team D responded with
this array of cupcakes as part of the dessert contest.
Teams competed for team spirit, with themed costumes and
all. Above is the TBS Team from Torrance: L to R (Front) Rosa
Cetina, Marshalet White, Ozzie Munoz L to R (Back) Zynette
Cohen, Jennifer Wolf, Sandra Lopez, Benny Nathan, Gorety
Baltazar, Kent Dunlap (Sr.VP), and Carl Vaca.
The staff from CPT enjoyed the barbecue and camaraderie.
They are, from left, Diana Murua, Kathy Saucedo, Yvonne
Lozano, and Evelyn Gandara
Some people play on the team and others cheer, but this baseball team
does both! Team Q, from Highland Park: Top (Left to right): Jasmine
Robles, Esmeralda Cardenas, Rocio Gonzales. Bottom (Left to Right):
Luz Segovia, Michael Southerland, Francisco Alcala, Jason Azicri. In
Front: Maureen Lanktree
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Lydee’s Angels even performed a dance. They are
Team E from Long Beach: Norma Dominguez Fabian,
Lois Ledger, Melissa Endriga and Katherine Bergam
Picnic in the Park
The staff of FSP
Torrance are:
Dale Young,
Wilmondson Lau,
Hugo Fernandez,
and Beau Rapp
With a sign that showed distances to the different SVCS
offices are, from left, Jasmine Jones, Jennifer Lash,
Megan Singer, Robin Mindnich, and Lonni Cowan.
HATS OFF TO GRADUATES IN THE CLASS OF 2013
Star View Adolescent Center’s graduates toss their hats in the air.
Stars High School graduated nine students in the Class of
2013 – the most ever. Seven students are pictured above.
Valley Star Principal Christine Talley congratulates the seven graduates who just
received diplomas at Valley Star High School at a ceremony last June.
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“Acting From the School of Life™”
Celebrates First Year at Star View
Adolescent Center
My Star View Shining Star!
By LaRita Shelby
Acting from the School of Life™
There is always one who steals your heart. Well maybe they all
do in some special way, but when surveying my recent drama
classes at Star View in Torrance, the progress of one client/student
stands out. I’ll call her my Shining Star. With all of the challenges
that these special young people face, not only day to day, but
moment to moment, gauging progress is even more unique.
When I showed up at Star View a year ago, any level of
engagement from the students was a major milestone. I
measured progress inch by inch, instead of leaps and bounds.
Each week, I watched for students who went from being totally
disengaged, to merely holding their head up, to a glance, a smile,
and then total participation. Time and time again one delightful
young lady comes to mind. For all that I could say about her, I
was most moved by what she had to say about our class. On the
day of our one-year culmination, she became the teacher and I
became the student. These are her words:
Having fun at one of the weekly drama classes at the Adolescent
Center are LaRita Shelby, Drama Instructor, Erica Wicke, Director
of Group Services, and Jerome Carter, with Inspiration 52.
When LaRita Shelby embarked upon her assignment to
teach weekly drama at Star View Adolescent Center (SVAC)
in Torrance, little did she know that it would be the most
challenging and rewarding experience of her career. LaRita
has worked in educational support for 15 years as part of the
Inspiration 52 team, providing motivational workshops and
literacy-based character building activities to schools throughout
Southern California. Additionally LaRita worked in television
and film, and has privately taught drama for a number of years.
With Star View came a wonderful opportunity to develop her
curriculum titled “Acting From the School of Life™.”
The program launched at SVAC in the fall of 2012 and
consisted of short lessons on theater history, followed by
fun and practical exercises in speech and drama. The class
explored drama as a historical and psychological reference.
The kids learned how ancient actors and playwrights
expressed themselves, and the kids were encouraged to do
the same. They learned the basis of conflict as interpreted
by the great Greeks, Aristotle, Euripides and Sophocles.
They performed fun interpretations from Aristophanes’ “The
Birds,” Disney’s “The Suite Life of Zack and Cody,” and
Academy Award-nominated movies such as Django, Lincoln
and Frankenweenie.
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“First of all let me start by saying that Acting from the
School of Life has taught me a lot about historical events
and how theatrical movies and events of the ancient
Romans and Greeks began. That is why we love when you
come for drama. I can’t speak for anyone else, but I can
speak for myself and that I love all the work you’ve done
for me and the kids here. We can’t wait to see what there
is to come next year or month in the class of Acting from
the School of Life. “
A Cinco de Mayo
celebration at the
Adolescent Center
sparked some fancy
dance moves by
Kyon Salaam, youth
counselor, and a client.
In the background are
Mark Thomas, youth
counselor (left) and
Edwin Petty, Lead
Instructional Aide.
SVAC Nurse Annabelle Carino created this masterpiece with playdough during one of the Cultural Competency trainings. Every
employee at SVAC has now completed the training.
Stick it to Stigma
Those who work with clients with mental illness know that
stigma is a very real problem. It was once a common perception
that having mental illness was due to some kind of personal
weakness. We now know that mental health disorders have a
biological basis and can be treated like other health conditions.
Even so, we still have a long way to go to overcome the many
misconceptions, fear and bias people have about mental health
and the stigma these attitudes create.
This page will provide information about fighting mental
health stigma.
Got Walking Shoes? A Friend? A Dog?
Fight Stigma by Participating in a NAMI Walk Near You
On Saturday, Oct. 5th, the National Alliance for Mental Health
(NAMI) will be sponsoring a walk at the Third Street Promenade
in Santa Monica to raise awareness of mental health and fight
stigma. Our employees in Southern California are encouraged to
participate in this 5K walk, as this should be a fun time to support
a good cause and to have fun with friends and co-workers.
Registration is free. Click here to register. You can even bring
your dog or a best friend (and for some, their dog is both).
Those in the Inland Empire may want to participate in the walk
on Saturday, Nov. 2nd, at Diamond Valley Lake Marina in Hemet.
This is also a 5K (which takes about 1 ½ hours to walk). Click
here to register.
NAMI walks are scheduled throughout California:
WalksiteCityDate
2013 NAMIWalk Los Angeles County
Los Angeles
October 5, 2013
2013 NAMIWalk Orange County
Huntington Beach
Sept. 28, 2013
2013 NAMIWalk Riverside/San Bernardino County
Hemet
November 2, 2013
2013 NAMIWalk Bay AreaSan FranciscoComing Soon
There are also NAMI bike rides to fight stigma. Coming soon is one in Davis, Calif. on Saturday, Nov. 2nd. There are scenic courses ranging
from 25 kilometers (15 miles) up to 100 kilometers (60 miles). For info, go to www.fightstigmaandride.org
The State Can Assume up to $10 K of your Student Loan per Year
If you are working at least half time in public mental health,
either for a county or a non-profit and you have outstanding
student loans, licensed or not, graduated or not, you may
qualify to have up to $10,000 of your student loans per year
paid through the Mental Health Loan Assumption Program
(MHLAP) after proof of service in public mental health or a
non-profit each year for up to six years. Your county approves
your eligibility and determines whether you are in a hard-to-fill
position.
Over $12 Million was allocated for this last cycle to be paid
directly to the loan institutions in June 2014. For this cycle the
application must be completed online by October 1, 2013 for
year July 2014 – July 2015. For Frequently Asked Questions, a
webinar and county contacts, visit: http://www.oshpd.ca.gov/
hpef/MHLAP.html.
You may also qualify to apply for the Licensed Mental Health
Services Provider Education Program (LMHSPEP) but you may
only accept one. For additional information: http://www.oshpd.
ca.gov/hpef/LMHSPLRP.html
Excerpted from Working Well Together Training and
Technical Assistance Center
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PHOTO CONTEST WINNER
Other notable mentions:
Baseball bonding by
Kraig Johnson, Oasis
Dr. Karyn Dresser, SBHG, submitted this photo from her
backpacking trip to the Collegiate Wilderness in Colorado. How
appropriate that this PhD hiked in a place named “Collegiate”!
This lighthouse
on Martha’s
Vineyard that
was featured in
the movie “Jaws”
and was taken
by Mary Howard,
SBHG.
Dog Days of Summer – Doug
Friedman, formerly SVCS,
entered this photo of his dog
frolicking on a summer camping
weekend near Mt.Whitney.
The one-year birthday,
by Jennifer Lozano,
SVCS
Taking kitty for a “wok” by
Kelly Sannah, SBHG Finance
“Creativity Heals” at Star View Adolescent Center
Creativity Heals, a non-profit, volunteer group, recently came
to SVAC to do an art project with the kids because, well,
creativity heals. This group specializes in art, music and dance
workshops. Creativity Heals was founded by three longtime friends who all work in the arts. Through the years they
recognized a need for more creativity in schools, placements,
and foster care agencies. Many of the volunteers themselves
found that dance, music, or art saved their life, gave them a
purpose, and helped to feed the soul and heal trauma.
Their workshops extend to all forms of art including: painting/
art and crafts (the artist experience wherein they teach about
an artist as they paint in their style), music (drum circles),
dance/movement (hip hop/all styles). Workshops are free (but
donations are welcome) and can be done for any number of
children, adolescents, adults, or families. For more information
about Creativity Heals workshops, click here.
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Pictured at the Creativity Heals art project are, from left:
Employee/volunteer, Dino Mayorga (artist/volunteer), Charleen
Meyer (Star View Employee/Co-founder), Jenny Kita (dancer/
Co-founder), Lucas Raynaud (artist/volunteer), Matt Kessinger
(Co-founder), Diana Chan (volunteer), Janet Langer (dancer/
volunteer), and Joann Jeffery (Star View Employee/volunteer).
ss ive ll
e
ln L e
el r – k W
W ne or
r
Part of a new
Co ell/W
wellness initiative to
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help our staff stay
Summer Exercise
Safety Tips
Healthy Recipe Couscous Salad
healthier and to help
us help our clients do
the same.
National Wellness Week is
September 16-22, 2013
While regular exercise is essential for good
health, it’s only beneficial if done safely.
Follow these precautions to eliminate the
danger in warm weather workouts.
Since 2007, the Substance Abuse and
Mental Health Services Administration
(SAMHSA) has promoted the improved
wellness of people with mental health and
substance use conditions by engaging,
educating, and training providers,
consumers, and policy makers. SAMHSA
partnered with a U.S. Food and Drug
Adminstration’s office to disseminate
wellness messages and motivate individuals
and community organizations to take action
through a Pledge for Wellness. Already,
more than 3,000 national and community
organizations are taking action for wellness.
Stay hydrated. Drink water before,
during and after exercising. Experts
recommend drinking 20 ounces of water
before exercising and eight ounces after
finishing your work out, with water breaks
every 15 to 20 minutes while exercising.
Click here for more information. Link to:
http://www.promoteacceptance.samhsa.
gov/10by10/default.aspx
Choose the right clothing. Wear loosefitting clothes to allow circulation of air
between your skin and the environment.
Wear sunscreen. Apply sunscreen with
an SPF of at least 15 half an hour before
exercising.
Moderate your pace. If it’s hotter than
usual, cut back on your pace or exposure
time. Don’t try to set personal records
during the hottest time of the year.
SVAC’s “Chaotic Harmony”
In yet another art-related experience, Dana Weiss, Director of Training, coordinated with former
SVAC employee, Charleen Meyer, to bring the Pollock Experience to the adolescent center.
The Pollock Experience brings a unique art program to the clients on the SVAC hospital unit that
lets the client choose an artist to emulate that uses both paint and movement in his/her work.
The volunteers and clients used found objects (marshmallows, twizzler sticks, and small cups)
to make their creation. Using all different methods with minimal rules, the group created a
masterpiece titled by the clients and volunteers “Chaotic Harmony (of SWAG).”
Couscous is made of tiny grains
of pasta and is a staple of North
African cooking. It combines well
with dried cherries in this highfiber salad, which can be served
as a great accompaniment to
pork, lamb or poultry.
1 cup water
¾ cup couscous
½ cup dried tart cherries
½ cup coarsely chopped carrots
½ cup chopped cucumber
¼ cup sliced green onions
¼ cup toasted slivered almonds
3 tbsp. balsamic vinegar
1 tbsp. olive oil
1 tbsp. Dijon-style mustard
Salt and pepper to taste
In a medium saucepan, bring
water to a boil. Add couscous
and remove from heat. Let stand,
covered, for 5 minutes before
fluffing couscous with a fork. Put
cooked couscous, dried cherries,
carrots, cucumbers, green onions
and almonds in a large mixing
bowl and mix well. In a separate
bowl, combine vinegar, olive
oil and mustard; mix well. Pour
over couscous, stirring to coat all
ingredients. Season with salt and
pepper. Serve chilled or at room
temperature.
Yield: 6 servings. Each serving
provides 190 calories, 1g of fat,
0mg of cholesterol, 28mg of
sodium and 9g of fiber.
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Management Changes
Star View Community Services
New Hires:
Lesley Castaneda, MFT, Supervisor II, Highland Park
Krista Zaks, MFT, Supervisor II, Compton
Promotion:
Mary Moulton, MTF, Supervisor II, Torrance
Andrew Preston, FSP Supervisor, Carson
Janet Kamikihara, Asst. Director of Evidence Based Practices
Reginald Alfon, Center Director, Long Beach
Oasis Rehabilitation Center
Promotion:
Jay Jester, Health Information Management Coordinator
Starlight Community Services
Promotions:
Elizabeth Lovely, LMFT, TM Clinical Supervisor
Alyssa Coley, LMFT, Program Supervisor - Aftercare
Michelle Sloan, ASW, Wraparound Supervisor I
Star View Adolescent Center
Promotions:
Kate McGregor, Psy. D., Admissions Manager
Charleen Meyer, LMFT, TBS Coordinator
Tereana Jolly, NOC Shift House Supervisor
Stars Community Services
Promotion:
Stephanie Downs, MFT, TAY/FCYS Coordinator
Stars Behavioral Health Group
Promotions:
Tara Morgan, Esq., Senior Director of HR/Legal Services
Demetrius Henry, Jr., MCP, Director of Information
Technology
EMPLOYEES HONORED WITH
MONTHLY AND QUARTERLY AWARDS
Starlight
January - Kali Rowson, Family Specialist
February - Tomas Castillo, MHS-I
March - Channing Franco
April - Xiomara Rocchild, Receptionist
May - Jessica Nguyen, Admin. Asst.
Star View Adolescent Center
February - Landon Sharp, MHS-II , CTF Primary Therapist
March - Glenda Shirer, TBS Coach
April - Rodney Hall, Shift Leader
May - Lakiste Barkus, Relief Shift Leader
June - Joel Barton, PHF Primary Therapist
Stars Community Services
April - Katharine Kaftanski, MHS-II
May - Feke Lauti, MHS-I
June - Jessica Charles, High School IA
NEW MEMBERS OF THE SENIOR
MANAGEMENT TEAM
Jan Koran, Chief Information Officer, SBHG
Roberto Lopez, LCSW, Oasis Community Services’ Center
Director
Pictured at the TEAMMATES Resource Fair, an outreach
event that attracts hundreds of people in the Los Angeles
area, are, from left, Carlos Cos, Facilitator TAY, Carson ;
Edgar Hernandez, Parent Partner, Compton; and Derek
Lewis, Peer Mentor, Carson.
Copyright (c) September 2013
At the TEAMMATES Resource Fair, a DJ got people dancing. In
addition, John Jones III, President of EASTSIDE Bike Club
(left) donated a bicycle for a raffle . He is shown with George
Cardenas, Facilitator.
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All Star News is the quarterly publication of
Stars Behavioral Health Group.
Corporate Office: 1501 Hughes Way, Ste. 150
Long Beach, CA 90810
Phone (310) 221-6336 x175
Email: jshannon@starsinc.com.
www.starsinc.com