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MVTC Awarded Grant from IECA Foundation

Posted on by Carl Lovejoy

The Independent Educational Consultants Association Foundation has awarded a $5,000.00 grant to Mountain Valley in support of MVTC’s visual arts center renovation. For more than twenty years, the IECA Foundation has served as the charitable arm of the Independent Educational Consultants Association, the nation’s leading professional organization for educational advisors in private practice. The Foundation leverages knowledge, professional skills and funds provided by IECA members, sponsors, and donors to help students map pathways to success.

Each year grants are made to programs and projects that produce pragmatic, measurable results for young people whose needs are often not met. Mountain Valley has well-served a large number of referrals from IECA members around the country over the years, and by awarding this generous grant the Foundation recognizes the remarkable work being done in Plainfield with adolescents suffering from debilitating anxiety and OCD. In addition, the fact that MVTC has integrated visual arts into its menu of treatment modalities resonated with the Foundation’s Grants Committee, and was excited, therefore, to honor Mountain Valley as one of their three 2018-2019 grant recipients.

Thanks to this thoughtful grant from the IECA Foundation, coupled with the generous donations from other foundations and thoughtful MVTC parents, the arts center renovation is on schedule to be completed by our 8th Annual Reunion/Summer Celebration on July 20th.  We are extremely grateful to all donors for their support of Mountain Valley!

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MVTC Names Sharon Baker Director of Clinical and Community Outreach for the D.C. Metro Region

Posted on by Carl Lovejoy

Sharon Baker has been named Mountain Valley’s Director of Clinical and Community Outreach for the D.C., Maryland and Virginia region. In this role, Sharon will provide connection and maintain relationships between MVTC and D.C. and its surrounding communities, and include the families, educators and mental health professionals who help support our mission.

Sharon received a Bachelor of Arts magna cum laude in Art and English with a Psychology minor from James Madison University and spent twenty years working in sales, marketing, and business development for a diverse array of companies and organizations. It was her passion for serving others and desire to assist families that led her to pursue a career in mental and behavioral health.

Prior to Mountain Valley, Sharon served in Clinical Outreach and Professional Relations capacities for national eating disorder programs in the DMV region. She served on the board of both the Eating Disorder Network of Maryland and Rock Recovery. Through these roles, she furthered her passion for assisting families, connecting community, and being a resource for others.

Although originally from Lancaster, PA, Sharon and her husband, Matt, live in Catonsville, MD with their two daughters. She is an avid health and fitness enthusiast. When not doing outreach in the community, you’ll find her running boot camps, practicing Pilates, playing tennis, or spending quality time with her husband and two active girls. Her passion for making meaningful relationships has been a common thread throughout her diverse career, and she continues to do this important work enthusiastically with Mountain Valley Treatment Center.

Sharon can be reached at sbaker@mountainvalleytreatment.org or on her cell at 603-960-0079.

 

 

 

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Mountain Valley Receives Grant from Mary W. Harriman Foundation

Posted on by Carl Lovejoy

Mountain Valley is pleased to make public the receipt of a generous, unrestricted grant from the Mary W. Harriman Foundation.  This is the first grant that MVTC has received from the Mary W. Harriman Foundation. Mountain Valley joins other not for profits such as the New York City Ballet, Women’s Heath Research at Yale University, Metropolitan Museum of Art, and the Harriman Institute at Columbia University to receive support from the Foundation.

To make a gift to Mountain Valley, please visit our Donation page on the MVTC website.

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Mountain Valley Announces an End of Summer, One Week, Back to School, Intensive ERP Program

Posted on by Carl Lovejoy

Mountain Valley has developed an intensive one-week, end of summer, Exposure and Response Prevention (ERP) program to help students become better prepared for the upcoming school year.  This one-week program, being offered to former Mountain Valley residents between the ages of 13 and 20 only, will serve as a refresher on CBT, ERP, coping skills, and academic stressors.  And there will be plenty of fun stuff, too!   The week-long program will begin on Sunday, August 19th and run until Saturday, August 25th and will be located on our beautiful Pike, NH campus.

Details:

  • Students arrive no later than 5:00 p.m. on Sunday, August 19th for registration.
  • Pick up by 5:00 p.m. Saturday, August 25th.
  • Applications must be received by Thursday, August 16th. Please use the standard MVTC application, focusing on current functioning and demographic/contact information.
  • Students must be medically stable at the time of enrollment.
  • For former Mountain Valley graduates between the ages of 13 and 20

Program Offerings:

  • Individualized Exposure Plan
  • Two individual sessions with a Mountain Valley therapist
  • One end of week family “wrap up” session
  • Two three-hour ERP groups focusing on individual exposures.
  • Two off-campus ERP sessions
  • Fitness and Adventure Programming
  • Mindfulness and Yoga
  • Equine Therapy
  • Tailored Academic Exposures

Cost:  $4900.00 – includes exposure therapy, therapeutic programming, room and board.  Fee must be pre-paid and accompany application.

SPACE IS LIMITED.

For more information, contact Jennifer Fullerton at or Tanya Moulton.

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Dr. Lee Chasen Joins MVTC’s Clinical Team as Consulting Creative Arts Clinician

Posted on by Carl Lovejoy

We are pleased to welcome Lee Chasen, Ph.D., R.D.T., L.C.A.T., to Mountain Valley’s clinical team.

Dr. Chasen is an expressive arts therapist and serves as an adjunct to the clinical team for MVTC’s Plainfield Campus and will provide consultation to the expressive arts program on the Pike Campus. Dr. Chasen joins Mountain Valley’s clinical team to facilitate the development and implementation of our robust and clinically integrated expressive arts program.  This unique, contemporary modality in the treatment of anxiety and related disorders differentiates MVTC from other treatment programs. As an adjunct to the clinical team and residential staff, Lee will lead the Expressive Arts groups and has developed a training curriculum for a residential activity therapy module.

Dr. Chasen has a strong background in individual and group clinical work, entrepreneurship, writing, clinical supervision and drama therapy.  He obtained a Ph.D. in 2003 from New York University’s Program in Drama Therapy after receiving a bachelor’s and master’s degree from the same institution. He also has a master’s degree in elementary education from Adelphi University and is a Registered Drama Therapist (R.D.T.) with the North American Drama Therapy Association and is a New York State Licensed Creative Arts Therapist (L.C.A.T.).

Dr. Chasen has written three books in the field, as well as a chapter in Clinical Applications of Drama Therapy in Child and Adolescent Treatment (2005). In 2013, Lee received the North American Drama Therapy Association’s Research Award for the approach and process described in Social Skills, Emotional Growth and Drama Therapy: Inspiring Connection on the Autism Spectrum (2011), which explores the relationship between mirror neurons, drama therapy, and social emotional development in children diagnosed with autism. In Dr. Chasen’s private practice experience, he has treated clients with anxiety, OCD and related issues as well as provided parenting education and family therapy.

Of note, Lee founded Kid Esteem Center for Social Learning, a nonprofit, collaborative organization dedicated to social emotional development and personal empowerment through drama therapy. Since 1997, Kid Esteem has provided dynamic, original programs and services for thousands of children and families in New York’s Long Island region, and remains a top referral source for area hospitals, social service and mental health agencies, school districts and private practitioners. In 2010, Lee co-founded the Kid Esteem Montessori School, a New York State accredited pre-K through 8th grade school with over 80 students that generates therapeutic experience within the academic curriculum through drama therapy and creative arts.

 

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MVTC Receives Donation from New Hampshire Charitable Foundation

Posted on by Carl Lovejoy

Cupid delivered an extraordinary Valentine to MVTC this year in the form of a charitable donation from the New Hampshire Charitable Foundation (NHCF).  This grant, made possible by an anonymous donor advised fund within the NHCF, has been awarded for general support and in recognition of Mountain Valley’s participation in the recent 2018 Pitch Camp sponsored by the Entrepreneurs’ Fund of New Hampshire (EFNH).  EFNH is an initiative of NHCF, and channels the expertise, energy and passion of the state’s leading entrepreneurs to strengthen New Hampshire communities through innovative philanthropy.

As a non-profit entity, Mountain Valley appreciates, and depends on, the generous tax-deductible support of thoughtful members of the MVTC family, including foundations such as NHCF. We look to thoughtful donors for support of those features that set Mountain Valley apart from other programs and institutions, as they provide critical resources that help to make Mountain Valley both vital and viable.

We thank the New Hampshire Charitable Foundation for their interest in, and support of, Mountain Valley.

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Mountain Valley Welcomes Four Consulting Professionals to Clinical Team

Posted on by Carl Lovejoy

Mountain Valley is pleased to announce the appointments of four experienced professionals to our already talented clinical staff.  To read more about our newest colleagues, visit the Clinical Staff page on the MVTC website.

Julie Balaban, M.D. – Consulting Psychiatrist 

Dr. Julie Balaban grew up in a suburb of New York City and left to attend college at Harvard University in Cambridge, MA.  She returned to New York to attend the State University Medical School in Brooklyn, NY, and completed both her general psychiatry and child and adolescent psychiatry training at the Cornell University Medical Center/Payne Whitney Clinic. In 2014, Dr. Balaban relocated to New Hampshire’s Upper Valley to work in the Dartmouth-Hitchcock system, and shortly after that, started working with Mountain Valley.

Dr. Balaban is a member of the Mountain Valley Admissions Committee and provides clinical supervision and peer review of documentation, protocols and implementation of the MVTC’s clinical program and medical services integration.

Burl Daviss, M.D. – Consulting Psychiatrist

Dr. Burl Daviss is an Associate Professor of Psychiatry and Interim Section Chief of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry at the Geisel School of Medicine. He is a child and adolescent psychiatrist who specializes in the pharmacological treatment of ADHD and mood disorders in youth and young adults. Dr. Daviss is the former medical director of the Center for Children and Families at the University of Pittsburgh, and he is a member of the American Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry.

Dr. Daviss provides medication management and consultation for MVTC residents and families as well as clinical guidance for MVTC staff.

Elizabeth Ellis Ohr, Psy.D. – Consulting Psychologist

Dr. Elizabeth Ohr is a licensed clinical psychologist with a private practice in Portsmouth, NH specializing in Cognitive Behavioral Therapy and Exposure and Response Prevention. Dr. Ohr specializes in evidence based treatment of anxiety disorders and her specialty includes Prolonged Exposure Therapy (PE) for PTSD, Exposure and Response Prevention (EX/RP) for OCD, as well as cognitive-behavioral treatment for social anxiety, panic disorder, specific phobias, and generalized anxiety.  Dr. Ohr is an Executive Board Member of the International OCD Foundation New Hampshire Affiliate and he is a Member-At-Large for the New Hampshire Psychological Association.

Dr. Ohr provides external supervision to MVTC clinicians for complex OCD cases as well as guidance for MVTC’s assessment and outcomes data collection activities.

Seoka Salstrom, Ph.D. – Consulting Psychologist

Dr. Seoka Salstrom is a licensed clinical psychologist and owner of the Hanover Center for Cognitive Behavioral Therapies, P.C. in Hanover, NH. She specializes in mindfulness and acceptance-based CBTs, including Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT), for the treatment of anxiety and mood disorders across the lifespan. She received her doctorate in Clinical Psychology in 2006 from The University of Georgia and completed an internship at Durham VA Medical Center where she received specialized training in CBT for sleep disorders and PTSD. A post-doctoral fellowship at the University of Wisconsin Hospital and Clinics provided training in the CBTs for anxiety among those with severe medical illnesses. Dr. Salstrom is a board member of the International OCD Foundation local affiliate, OCD New Hampshire.

As a clinical consultant to MVTC, Dr. Salstrom provides external supervision and training in third-wave behavioral therapies, including ACT.

 

 

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Mountain Valley Treatment Center Announces Plan to Operate on Two Campuses

Posted on by Carl Lovejoy

Mountain Valley Treatment Center is pleased to announce that in order to support our growth and serve even more adolescents, and their families, who suffer from debilitating anxiety and OCD, we will continue to operate on our current campus in Pike, NH and, at the same time, open our recently acquired campus in Plainfield, NH – near Hanover and Dartmouth College.

While Mountain Valley’s original plan was to move our entire operation from our longtime campus in Pike, NH to the former Home Hill Inn in Plainfield, NH, the significant increase in interest by referral sources and families since our inception in 2011 has justified adding an additional facility. Operating on two distinct campuses will allow Mountain Valley to continue to be an attractive employment option, offering unique and specific CBT training and certification for residential program staff as well as increased professional development for clinical staff.  Demographics of the resident population will not change, yet having two campuses may allow for a specific sub-set of our current resident profile at each location.  This growth enables Mountain Valley to continue its mission and help even more adolescents, and their families, as well as provide additional employment opportunities within the communities we are located.

We will be operational on the Plainfield campus in January 2018. The recruitment of both residential and clinical staff has been ongoing, and experienced, qualified professionals are being hired for immediate training. Most important to our business growth strategy is ensuring our ability to realize our vision and mission. Helping more parents and their children with debilitating anxiety and OCD is paramount.

We have many to thank for Mountain Valley’s ongoing growth and development. Nearly 500 adolescents have successfully completed treatment since we opened in 2011, and we look forward to serving even more families in the years ahead. Should you have any questions, please contact Don Vardell, Executive Director at dvardell@mountainvalleytreatment.org.

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MVTC Announces Plan to Move to Plainfield, New Hampshire

Posted on by Carl Lovejoy

Mountain Valley Treatment Center has recently purchased a spectacular piece of property in Plainfield, NH.  If all goes well, we hope to move to this new location sometime around the holidays.  While our current location has served us well, there are many factors that have gone into our decision to move, and we are excited to do so.  We believe that the Plainfield location will address some of the challenges that we have faced and better serve our mission and daily programming without sacrificing many of the aspects that have made the Pike campus unique and successful.

Our new home in Plainfield will be on 25-acres of land settled by Thomas Gallup in 1763.  The Gallup Homestead, built in 1818, was owned by the Gallups until 1912 – ending a remarkable six-generation ownership.  Since then, the Federal-style brick home has been used as a private home and, most recently, an inn.  Our intention is to use this magnificent building for administrative offices, residents’ rooms, and dining.  The Carriage House, located directly behind the main building, will also be used as a dormitory.  A third building, also on the campus, will serve as our Clinical Center and feature office space for our therapists, nurses and psychiatrists.  Other on-campus buildings will be used for Residential Staff offices and programming – art, yoga, gardening and, of course, our animals!

Our move to Plainfield is occurring for many reasons, including:

Safety – With all needed facilities on one central campus, our residents and staff will spend far less time in vans driving to dormitories and programming locations.

Geography – Plainfield is significantly closer to Hanover and Lebanon, NH, as well as other destinations for therapeutic programming opportunities and medical appointments. The Plainfield campus is also minutes away from the Lebanon Airport, the I-89/I-91 junction and the Dartmouth College campus, and approximately an hour closer to Manchester, Boston and New York.

 

Programming Opportunities – All the experiential education modules that have helped to make the MVTC experience unique will still happen on the Plainfield campus – gardening, fitness, hiking, biking, etc.  There is also a clay tennis court, a pitch and putt golf course and acres of pastures for our animals – including the chickens and their Cadillac Coop!  In addition, we are near the Connecticut River for easy access to canoeing, kayaking and fishing, and Mt. Ascutney and Mt. Sunapee for skiing and hiking – and our immediate neighbors include a Christmas tree farm, an equestrian center, a dairy, orchards and a nursery and farm stand.

In the coming months, we will be preparing for the seamless transition from Pike to Plainfield.  Contractors are currently in Plainfield making sure that the facilities are ready for (up to) 24 residents and our clinical and residential staff. In the next few weeks, the residents will begin to spend Tuesdays in Plainfield engaged in therapeutic programming – and becoming accustomed to what for some of them will become their new MVTC home. They, like the staff, are very excited about this opportunity – one that would not have happened without the support, guidance and leadership from our advisors, parents and, especially, our former residents.  We thank you all.

 

Please feel free to contact me with any questions you might have – and follow us on Facebook and Instagram to see the progress being made.  And should you ever be back in the Upper Valley, please give us a call, we’d love to give you a tour of our new home.

Sincerely,

Don Vardell                                                                                                                                                           Executive Director

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MVTC Adds Movement Development to Wellness Curriculum

Posted on by Carl Lovejoy

It is well documented that group-based movement therapy is beneficial for those with mood and anxiety disorders.  To that end, Mountain Valley has enhanced its Mindfulness-based Cognitive Therapy curriculum (MBCT) and enlisted Mike St. Laurence, the Movement Coach at The River Valley Club in Lebanon, NH, to teach Movement Development to our residents. Movement Development, part of the “Movement Culture” as initiated by Ido Portal, focuses on the importance of cultivating a comprehensive movement practice to achieve physical self-awareness and general well-being. Movement education, through quality and control of the physical movement, pulls from many methods and disciplines, such as yoga, Pilates, dance, martial arts, sports and fitness training, to explore and understand the true principles of appropriately and efficiently moving one’s body and being in touch or mindful of the relationship between body and mind.  “Movement Mike,” as he is referred to by residents, feels strongly that these principles are relevant to everyone – and will always be relevant.

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