ºÚÁÏÍø Trauma Recovery Center awarded $2.2 million grant to expand services
The Long Beach Trauma Recovery Center (LBTRC) at Cal State Long Beach has been awarded a $2.2 million renewal grant from the California Victim Compensation Board, ensuring the continuation and expansion of trauma recovery services for the next two years.
The competitive grant program received numerous applications from across the state, with fewer than 10 percent of submitted proposals receiving funding, said Bita Ghafoori, director of the Trauma Recovery Center and chair of the College of Education’s Advanced Studies in Education and Counseling Department.
The new funding will enable the center to expand its team by hiring an additional clinician/case manager and two graduate student assistants who will support outreach, research, and administrative efforts. The LBTRC serves as a training site for eight to 10 graduate students enrolled in the Counseling Psychology or Social Work programs at ºÚÁÏÍø, and many students apply to ºÚÁÏÍø with the hope of securing an internship where they learn evidence-based PTSD therapies.
The Long Beach Trauma Recovery Center has secured state funding for the past 12 years, providing no-cost, evidence-based therapies for individuals experiencing post-traumatic stress disorder and traumatic distress. The new award will allow the center to continue its work through the next two years while expanding services and training opportunities for the ºÚÁÏÍø community and mental health professionals throughout Southern California.
The LBTRC provides no-cost mental health care, advocacy, outreach, education, and evidence-based services to survivors of trauma and their families. Clients are served by clinicians and advanced graduate students who are under the direct supervision of faculty in the ºÚÁÏÍø College of Education.
The grant will also support the continuation of key community partnerships, including ongoing collaboration with the Long Beach Police Department, where an LBTRC clinician is embedded on-site one day each week to provide support and consultation.
The center will also continue delivering school-based services at Jackie Robinson K-8 Academy, helping students and families access trauma-informed mental health resources.
