Focus Area: Early Childhood

Grant Amount: $10,000

Located in St. Cloud. Ellison Center was founded in response to the lack of appropriate services and resources for early childhood mental health in the area, and developed out of a dream of what could be. Ellison’s mission is, when young children and their families are facing challenges, to nurture hope and joy and provide support to strengthen families, while enriching the surrounding communities through responsive and innovative programs in a safe and secure environment.

Grant supports expanding Ellison’s early childhood mental health program by training staff in two evidence-based models that support mental health services for young children and families: Attachment and Biobehavioral Catch-up (ABC) and Child-Parent Psychotherapy (CPP). This initiative focuses on relationship-based, trauma-informed care that is grounded in research and cultural relevance and includes targeted professional development to build staff expertise. Together, these models offer a continuum of care that promotes healing and resilience in young children and their families.