Youth

• Multimedia
• Archives
• Resources / Links
• Artwork
• Recovery Experiences
• Personal Links / Recommendations

Click Here to access our calendar for Peer Operated Happenings in your Area.

Click Here to go to our forum and join in on Peer to Peer Discussions.

The State and Local Area Advisory Councils are open to consumers ages 16-29. We encourage Youth and Young Adult Consumers to come and experience empowerment in relation to their experiences with a mental health diagnosis, substance use (and recovery) and the mental health system in Massachusetts. No voice at our councils goes to waste. We are organized as experts due to our lived-experience. We are part of a statewide effort to re-shape services for the better. To get involved with the State or a Local Area Council contact

The first Statewide Youth Advisory Council was held in April 2007 at Westborough State Hospital, Lincoln Conference Room and was coordinated and chaired by Jessel-Paul Smith

Statewide Youth Advisory Council of Massachusetts

“Our Voice: The official website of the Statewide Youth Advisory Council.”

The Statewide Youth Advisory Council of Massachusetts brings together providers, youth and young adults to advise the Department of Mental Health. We are a group of Young Adults who work together to find equality and to advocate for each other, ourselves, and any youth and young adults in the DMH system and the community. We represent youth and young adults with mental illness in the state of Massachusetts through personal experience as peers. Mental illness is an aspect of character and therefore does not define us.”

The Statewide Youth Advisory Council is currently working on several projects. As a voice for young adults (16-29) consumers in Massachusetts we liberally utilize the media. Projects include:

NEW! "Young Adult Policy Team"

SAMSHA Video "Young Adult Portraits of Culture, Diagnosis and Mental Health Recovery"

• A YOUTUBE channel http://www.youtube.com/user/voiceofSYAC
• A minority-in-services documentary project (funded by a grant from SAMHSA’S ADS CENTER)
• An upcoming article in the DMH Newsletter Perspectives (link coming soon)
• National Youth Bill of Rights! give input and support at:bill of rights
  for more information or for any and all feedback email: pdxyouthsummit@gmail.com

You can see the voice of SYAC Youth manifest in the following:

• Employment For All Originally Aired October 29th 2pm -2:30 pm: Council Coordinator Matthew McWade and DMH Coordinator of Interagency Activities Ann Capocia will be interviewed
• SYAC YOUTUBE Channel
• Martin and Owen (Peer Mentors who are affiliated both with the SYAC and Arlington Local Area Council) featured on Employment For All
• Luke Knowles and Jessel-Paul Smith Article in Summer 2007 DMH Newsletter
• http://www.rtc.pdx.edu/pgFPW09TOC.php  Two Articles in Focal Point By Matthew McWade (second Co-authored by Statewide Youth Advisory Council)

(all projects expressing youth voice will be archived. To go to the archive click here.)

These are the other sections pertaining to youth

• Multimedia: this is the section devoted to various multimedia content including the Voices of SYAC video series on You tube.
• Youth Forum: Contains information about our youth section of our forum as well as how to register and participate.
• Youth Projects : Projects Pertaining to the youth community
• Archives:
• Resources / Links:
• Artwork:
• Recovery Experiences:
• Local Councils:
• Personal Links / Recommendations: