The National Latino Behavioral Health Association
(NLBHA) was established to fill a need for a unified national
voice for Latino populations in the behavioral health arena and
to bring attention to the great disparities that exist in areas
of access, utilization, practice based research and adequately
trained personnel.
Brief History
In March of 2000, the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Administration
(SAMHSA) and its Center for Mental Health Services (CMHS) acknowledged
the growing mental health service needs of a rapidly growing Hispanic/Latino
community by sponsoring a National Congress for Hispanic Mental
Health. SAMHSA determined that services must be more accessible,
appropriate, and responsive to the needs of the Latino Community
and declared the need for a plan to serve as an heirloom for the
next generation. The aim of the Hispanic Congress was to create
a vision for Latino mental health for the new century. The conference
brought together national Latino leaders in behavioral health
research and services, advocates and consumers/family members
to define critical issues in behavioral services to Latinos. As
its' top priority the group recommended the need for a single
voice to address the mental health and substance abuse issues
facing the Latino community. In September of 2000 a Steering Committee
of the National Congress met in Los Angeles, California and officially
formed the National Latino Behavioral Health Association (NLBHA).
NLBHA received its' 501(c ) (3) status in 2002.
NLBHA Mission
The mission and Goal of The National Latino Behavioral Health
Association is to influence national behavioral health policy,
eliminate disparities in funding and access to services, and improve
the quality of services and treatment outcomes for Latino populations.
NLBHA Vision
"NLBHA's Vision is to bring attention to the great disparities
that exist in the areas of funding, access, and quality of care
for Latino consumers and families needing professional mental
health and substance abuse services."
Objectives for Meeting NLBHA's Mission
The Objective of the NLBHA is to provide national leadership on
mental health and substance abuse concerns of the Latino community
in five major areas of focus:
- Policy Issues in Mental Health and Substance Abuse;
- Education and Workforce issues;
- Mental Health and Substance Abuse Service Delivery;
- Latino Focused Behavioral Health Research;
- Latino Family Focused Interventions.
Strategies
The Strategies for meeting the NLBHA Mission and Objectives is to
actively address the behavioral health issues of Latino Families
through:
- Convening of state Latino Behavioral Health Policy Roundtables;
- Providing Cultural Competency Training;
- Providing Consultation to policy makers, community agencies,
and others on Latino Behavioral Health Issues;
- Identifying characteristics of community based programs and
services that are successful and effective in delivering culturally
appropriate services to Latino families;
- Serving as a Clearinghouse for Latino related behavioral health
information, studies and reports;
- Educating the public on Latino disparities;
- Providing conferences, workshops, task forces, and interviews
on Latino behavioral health related issues;
- Training of Mental Health Interpreters;
- Providing Testimony to the President's Commission on Mental
Health regarding mental health issues impacting on Latino populations;
- Collaboration with other national racial/ethnic behavioral
health organizations on issues of mutual concern.
Direction and Governance
NLBHA is guided by a thoughtful and hard working group of individuals. Each brings a depth of experience and leadership to NLBHA.
NLBHA President: Fredrick Sandoval, MPA, was
appointed by Governor Bill Richardson as the Income Support Division
Director for the New Mexico Human Services Department in 2006.
He oversees 1,100 employees in 34 field offices across the state.
The agency administers Food Stamps, TANF, Low Income Energy Assistance,
and General Assistance programs with a budget of more than $500
million. He is the former Executive Administrator of the New Mexico
Behavioral Health Purchasing Collaborative which is a 17 state
agency effort that is transforming the New Mexico delivery system
into a single behavioral health system. Prior to this appointment,
Mr. Sandoval was Deputy Secretary of Programs and the Behavioral
Health Division Director for the State of New Mexico Department
of Health. As Deputy Secretary he had oversight responsibility
for more 3,600 employees in six state facilities and six divisions
including behavioral health, public health, long term services,
epidemiology, health improvement and scientific laboratory. Before
returning to state government, Mr. Sandoval served as Planner
Supervisor for the City of Santa Fe Community Services Department
for ten years. During that period, he also served as the Project
Director for Crisis Response, a Local Initiative Funding Partners
Program Project funded by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.
He served two 3-year terms on the National Board of Directors
for the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI) in Arlington,
Virginia and serving as First Vice-President, Secretary and Chair
of the Personnel and Planning Committees. Fred has twenty-four
years experience in health and human services working in non-profit
including community mental health administrator. He has served
as an appointee, elected member and volunteer on numerous commissions,
boards, and advisory committees.
Vice President: Guillermo Brito, Ph.D. Dr. Brito has over 20 years of experience in the behavioral and public health fields. Originally trained as a clinical psychologist, he brings to NLBHA experienced leadership having previously worked as the CEO of the National Latino Council on Alcohol and Tobacco Prevention (LCAT) in Washington, DC. Prior to this he served as the CEO of Region 2 Behavioral Health Provider’s, Inc. in Santa Fe, NM. He currently serves as Special Advisor to the CEO & President of the Legacy Foundation.
Secretary: Rosemary Celaya-Alston, MA.is the Executive Director for Desarrollo Integral de la Familia (DIF) a nonprofit Latino based organization in Portland, Oregon. She currently is adjunct faculty to Oregon Health Sciences University in the Public Health Department and Portland State University. Rosemary has over 30 years of experience in the mental health and addictions field with 9 years in a county system developing a system of care for children/families, overseeing contracts and management. Her clinical experience includes sexual abuse and incest issues with children and families, expert witness for the courts of Los Angeles and Arizona with children in the protective service system, wrote, developed and designed a Mental Health Manual/Videotape culturally specific to Hispanic and Native American Elderly for the University Of Arizona College Of Medicine. Rosemary is currently working on several research projects that are Latino focused with OHSU,completing here dissertation in education and consulting.
Treasurer: Myriam L. Monsalve-Serna, MS. Ed, LMFT, is Executive Director for the Center for Community Learning, Inc (CLC), Miami. For over 10 years Myriam Monsalve-Serna has worked to help families expand their support networks and has worked to connect Natural Helpers with formal resources. The CLC resulted from Myriam's work as an Annie E. Casey Foundation Children and Family Fellowship recipient. She created a comprehensive curriculum for supporting the process of providing credentials for the work of natural helpers and designed the Center to focus more intensely on capacity building with Natural Helpers. The Center is also providing training and technical assistance in Florida, Washington State, and Connecticut. Additionally, Ms. Monsalve-Serna was involved in planning, designing and implementing the Abriendo Puertas Family Resource Center in East Little Havana, a product of the Annie E. Casey Foundation Mental Health Initiative. Ms. Monsalve-Serna was born in Colombia , South America. She received her degree as a psychologist from the Universidad Nacional in Bogotá, Colombia and her M.S.Ed in marriage and family therapy from the University of Miami in Coral Gables, Florida.
Executive Director: C. H. Hank Balderrama, was a founder and first executive director of Consejo and Counseling Referral Service in Seattle in 1978, an agency that continues to serve a target population of Hispanics. He has worked extensively in the area of organizational cultural competence ever since and was co-chair of a national panel that developed standards of care for Latinos in a mental health environment in a project sponsored by SAMHSA. He has been assigned to promote cultural competence at the Washington State Mental Health Division since March, 1989 where he has formulated policy, developed training and provided leadership to headquarters, state hospitals, regional contractors and mental health centers in the areas of client services, community involvement, training and education, hiring and contracting.
Member: Rachel G. Guerrero, MSW, Ms. Guerrero is a Chicana, bi-lingual bi-cultural, Licensed Clinical Social Worker. She was born and grew up in Los Angeles, she is a daughter of a Mexican born immigrate father and U.S. born Mexican mother. Her career inspiration comes from her mother, who was a community organizer and advocate. Ms Guerrero is the Chief of the Office of Multicultural Services for the California State Department of Mental Health; in this role she has statewide leadership responsibility for developing culturally and linguistically competent mental health programs. She has been working at the state, county and federal levels to identify strategies to eliminate mental health disparities to racial ethnic populations. Her career expands 30 years in the public sector including social services, juvenile justice, children and youth mental health and 16 years as a state administrator. Ms. Guerrero is recognized nationally as a leader in the field of mental health and cultural competency. In 2002 she was honored with the CA. Statewide Mental Health Cultural Competence Leadership Award.
Member: Mario Hernandez, Ph.D. is Professor/Director of Division of Training, Research, Evaluations and Demonstrations (August, 2004-present), Department of Child and Family Studies, Florida Mental Health Institute, University of South Florida. Dr. Hernandez provides management and leadership for a division of 79 professional and support employees. His responsibilities include fiscal management, personnel management, and research development. Dr. Hernandez served as Associate Professor/ Director of Division of Training, Research, Evaluations and Demonstrations from 1998 - 2004 in the Department of Child and Family Studies, Florida Mental Health Institute, University of South Florida . He currently holds two Joint Faculty Appointments, one in the Department of Community and Family Health, College of Public Health , University of South Florida and the other with the Department of Special Education, College of Education, University of South Florida.
Member: Ana Lazu, Founder and Executive Director of Latinos Unidos Siempre Inc., a nonprofit organization developed to assist Latino families, individuals, children, youth and elder in removing barriers to mental health and addiction services, and improve accessibility and work towards recovery. The program also informs, educates and counsels consumers about legal rights and the grievance process. Ms. Lazu assesses individual and family's needs for mental health and or addiction, crisis and social services, advocates on their behalf, links families to appropriate programs and services, accompanies clients to mental health appointments and serves as their interpreter. She educates providers, professionals and others about service delivery with respect and dignity for Latinos. She is an activist, public speaker, facilitator, consultant, and program presenter, and serves on several local boards such as the Southeastern Mental Health Authority, Eastern Regional Mental Health Board, Self Advocate Board, Multicultural Task Force, Senior Board, and Norwich Alliance against Racism. She is also Co-chair of Norwich Consumer and Latino Families and writer of a bilingual column for a local newspaper in Spanish and English. Ms. Lazu is also on the Board of Directors of the National Alliance of Multiethnic Behavioral Health Associations (NAMBHA).
Member: Kenneth J. Martinez, Psy.D., Dr. Martinez is a Licensed Clinical Psychologist and currently the Mental Health Resource Specialist with the Technical Assistance Partnership for Children and Families Mental Health at the American Institutes for Research (AIR) in Washington, D.C. He provides technical assistance to the 53 Children’s System of Care Communities nationally that are funded by the Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration (SAMHSA) from his office in New Mexico. Dr. Martinez is a member of the Technical Assistance Partnership’s Cultural Competence Action Team which is developing the Cultural and Linguistic Competence Implementation Guide and several other cultural and linguistic competence related products.
Dr. Martinez was the State Children’s Behavioral Health Director in New Mexico prior to assuming his position with the Technical Assistance Partnership. He is also Clinical Assistant Professor of Psychiatry at the University of New Mexico Health Sciences Center. As immediate past Chair of the National Association of State Mental Health Program Directors (NASMHPD), Children, Youth and Families Division, Dr. Martinez represented the children’s mental health directors of the 50 states and territories. He is on the Advisory Board for the Research and Training Center at the Florida Mental Health Institute and the Practice Based Evidence study at the Research and Training Center at Portland State University. He was on the 2004 Planning Committee for the Rosalynn Carter Annual Symposium on Mental Health and is a member of the SAMHSA sponsored Outcomes Roundtable for Children and Families. Dr. Martinez is working on the advisory committee, under the leadership of Jane Knitzer and Mareasa Isaacs, on Unclaimed Children Revisited, a strategic policy initiative on the 25th anniversary of the original publication. He has authored and presented papers in the fields of cultural applications in child and family psychotherapy, cultural and linguistic competence, juvenile justice and mental health, systems integration, evidence based practices/practice based evidence and behavioral health financing. Dr. Martinez has particular interest in the translation of cultural and linguistic competence values and principles into practical implementation strategies in children’s behavioral health systems. He has done extensive volunteer work in El Salvador since the Civil War Peace Accords were signed in 1992. He co-founded a grassroots organization to assist families affected by the war.
Member: Gilberto Romero Gilberto has been a well-known mental health advocate since 1987 to voice and express the needs of mental health consumers. He himself is a consumer who has been in recovery for more than 30 years and has been a community leader in mental illness recovery. Having experienced mental health problems since adolescence, Gilberto has opening declared himself as a consumer and has worked to eliminate the stigma associated with mental illness. He has established his own consumer operated business as the founder and owner of a radio public health program called "Informes de Esperanza" and "Public Health Updates". He has provided community programs on mental health, wellness, recovery and self-help approaches. He has used a bilingual approach to his messaging and public information. He is a member of the National Alliance on Mental Illness and of the National Latino Behavioral Health Association. He has been a guest speaker at international, national, regional, state and local conferences. He has trained, consulted and advised policy makers, legislators, elected officials and providers on consumer issues for more than 25 years. He has organized community events such as "Partners in Wellness" and "Speak Out Santa Fe" and many candlelight vigils for consumers who have died because of their mental illness. Gilberto will be the first to remind you that a person with mental illness will live 20 years less than persons without mental illness.
Member: Delia Saldaña, Ph.D., is an Associate Professor at the University of Texas Health Science Center at San Antonio. She is native to San Antonio, and as a first-generation college student was trained at Wellesley College, Trinity University and UCLA. Her skills as a licensed bilingual clinical psychologist have focused on community-based health services research and program evaluation, and she has developed a national reputation as trainer of multidisciplinary audiences in development and provision of cross-culturally competent behavioral and integrated health care. She has an extensive record of success and leadership in working with large and complex organizations, and has developed numerous collaborative relationships with diverse communities nationally. She is a member of the national NAMI scientific council, Tomas Rivera Scholar, Governor’s Council on U.S.-Mexico Border Health, epidemiology advisory group of the Texas Department of Health and Human Services, board of directors for Texas CASA (court-appointed child advocates), and a consultant for the National Center of Cultural Competence at Georgetown University.
Dr. Saldaña has consistently focused on Latino communities who are under-served and lack access to appropriate and available integrated health care. Since 1990, she has developed several community based research projects examining mental health issues that are impacted by ethnicity, poverty, and culture in South Texas. She conducted a large study of caregiver burden among Mexican origin mothers of severely mentally ill individuals in urban and rural areas, served as principal investigator of a state-funded needs assessment of mental health services along the Lower Rio Grande Valley, evaluated residential and outpatient preventive substance abuse programs in South Texas, developed a 26 manual toolkit on psychosocial rehabilitation resources for mental health authorities in Texas, authored a widely disseminated provider training manual on cultural competence published by the Hogg Foundation for Mental Health, collaborated extensively with consumers/Prosumers and family advocates, and worked with Texas and Arizona to develop state tools including cultural competence curriculums and organizational self-assessments. She served as principal evaluator of the APA Gold Award Pre- and Post-booking jail diversion program for severely mentally ill adults in Bexar County, and principal investigator of a preventive academic, parenting and vocational skill building program for Latino pregnant teens and their partners. Further, she has worked with Centers of Excellence in the Lower Rio Grande Valley to develop web-based learning seminars for health professionals in integrating alternative healers as well as developing culturally responsive health care skills to Latinos. She has also developed software products that become community resources and contributes to Latino policy manuscripts aimed at reducing the gap of quality of care received by Latinos and other people of color.
Member: Wilfredo Soto
Member: Francisco A. Villarruel, Ph.D., Professor, Department of Family and Child Ecology and University Outreach and Engagement Fellow at Michigan State University . Dr. Villarruel served as Associate Professor in the Department of Family and Child Ecology and Resident Director, CIC Study Abroad Program, Dominican Republic until 2003. He received his Ph.D. in 1990 from the University of Wisconsin-Madison , majored in Child and Family Studies and minored in Distributed (Communicative Disorders; Curriculum and Instruction; Educational Psychology; Educational Technology; English).
Staff
Director of Programs and Membership: A Marie Sanchez currently serves as Director of Programs and Membership for NLBHA. She was Executive Director of NLBHA from 2000 – 2005 providing leadership in establishing the Association, building its membership and network and developing and operationalizing its policies. She was responsible for organizing and working with state planning groups in setting up State Latino Mental Health Policy Roundtables and policy summits. She collaborated with national organizations seeking strategies for outreaching and educating Latino communities; participated in conferences, meetings and workshops to educate service providers about culturally appropriate service delivery to Latino families and communities; provided technical assistance and resource materials to organization membership and other constituents; and researched and identified community based programs that are recognized as providing culturally appropriate and effective services to Latinos. The latter resulted in a monograph for the Annie E. Casey Foundation, highlighting programs that provide “Culturally Competent Appropriate Services in Latino Communities”.
Prior to NLBHA, Ms. Sanchez was with the Mental Health Program of the Western Interstate Commission for Higher Education (WICHE) for 22 years. As Chief of Office of Human Resource Development from 1998-2000, she provided oversight to cultural competence related projects.
Director of Resource Development: Patrick S Sanchez, MS, 2000 – Present. From 1997-2000 Sanchez was President/CEO of the Southwest Community Outreach Corporation. He was responsible for organizing disadvantaged rural communities in Colorado for economic and community development including assisting community leadership in creating partnerships with government agencies, institutions, private corporations for the purpose of developing new strategies for sustaining economic and community development. From 1989 – 1997, Sanchez was Executive Director of the Mexican American State Legislators Policy Institute, headquartered in Denver, CO. Responsibilities included conceptualizing, organizing, establishing and administering a Policy Institute that provided national networking of Latino State Legislators and resources. Prior to this, Sanchez served as Associate Vice Chancellor for Academic Services at the University of Colorado at Boulder. His responsibilities included supervision of the Study Abroad Program, International English Center, Education Media and Technology Center and five Educational Opportunity Programs. One of his major accomplishments at the University of Colorado/Boulder was the development of BUENO Bilingual/ Bicultural Education Center within the School of Education. Before his service at CU he was Executive Director of a Graduate Study Program for Latinos in Information Science and Library Science at California State University at Fullerton. He has also served as a Teacher Trainer for new teachers recruited in the East Los Angeles area schools.
NLBHA Headquarters
P. O. Box 387
Berthoud, CO 80513
Telephone (970) 532-7210
Fax (970) 532-7209
Email: msanchez@nlbha.org
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