Moses Taylor Foundation embraces a whole-person approach in alignment with its mission to improve the health of people in Northeastern Pennsylvania.
Following a robust RFP-based selection-process in 2025, nine organizations received two years of funding as part of the Foundation's inaugural Mental Health Learning Community Cohort. Participating organizations are focusing on expanding access to, and increasing the availability of, mental and behavioral health services for adults within the Foundation’s 11-county region.
In addition to implementing their funded projects, Cohort participants come together—in person—multiple times per year to share experiences, exchange ideas, explore solutions to shared challenges, and learn from each other to strengthen their collective work across the region.
The nine grantees are contributing to:
The short video below highlights the group's experiences, projects, and learnings as of the mid-point of their work.
The Bridges to Wellness program delivers culturally responsive mental health interventions that remove barriers to service while fostering well-being in the local immigrant and refugee communities. Through this multicultural initiative, the program recruits and trains peers representative of the population served as Wellness Coaches. The Coaches offer culturally sensitive workshops on mental health concepts, coping strategies, and available resources. They also lead peer support groups and community events to promote mental health awareness and help build social bonds. Workshops are hosted in spaces and locations where participants already feel safe and welcome—familiar, comfortable spaces where these communities naturally gather. Catholic Social Services continues to partner with local mental health providers to strengthen a referral system for participants who require external resources and specialized care.
Contact: Fikile Ryder • 570-207-2238 x 2121
Click to learn more about Catholic Social Services, Diocese of Scranton.
The Our HAIR initiative promotes mental health wellness by training barbers, cosmetologists, and stylists within the Black community to serve as Wellness Ambassadors in diverse neighborhoods across Lackawanna, Luzerne, Susquehanna, and Wyoming Counties. Wellness Ambassadors are trained and equipped with knowledge and resources to provide clients with referrals and suggested community support to address mental or behavioral health concerns. Community Care Behavioral Health (CCBH), a nonprofit behavioral health managed care organization based in Pittsburgh, recognizes racial disparities in behavioral health care access and engagement. CCBH serves as the lead organization for the Our HAIR initiative and offers a toll-free Our HAIR concierge line to help callers connect with appropriate care, regardless of insurance status and to address crisis concerns. By providing support within the community, where individuals often connect with trusted personal service professionals, Our HAIR is removing cultural and logistical barriers to care and creating a realistic pathway for harder-to-reach populations to access services. Read more about Our HAIR—one of our recent Grantee Spotlights—by clicking here.
Contact: Lori Weems, MS • 412-401-7817
Click to learn more about CCBH.
Geisinger has established a Mental and Behavioral Health Coordinator position within its local hospitals to expedite care and provide high-level patient support by identifying and following up on complex cases, collaborating with the multidisciplinary team to develop and implement patient care plans, and facilitating telemedicine, home, and hospital visits. The Coordinator identifies gaps in care and necessary resources and connects patients to additional services as needed. Creating this role has reduced wait times and helped more patients receive the right care at the right time. Integration with community-based organizations has also increased access to a variety of services and supports patients can connect to in alignment with clinically-based care. The Geisinger team acknowledged the initial, excellent outcomes and, within four months of hiring and integrating its first Mental and Behavioral Health Coordinator, added five more. The organization continues to integrate the Coordinator role within its care teams.
Contact: Paul Shirvinski, BS CADC • 570-214-4129
Click to learn more about Geisinger Health Foundation.
The Greater Scranton YMCA’s Caring Communities for Mental Health Program offers free, community-based mental health services within a familiar, community-based setting. This program provides tailored case management, evidence-based curricula, and a variety of workshops to foster mental wellness and connection. A dedicated Community Care Worker (CCW) delivers services, collaborates to remove barriers and facilitates referrals to higher levels of care and other supportive services, particularly for disadvantaged populations. The CCW also helps bridge support during service delays and provides in-home services for individuals with transportation barriers. Through confidential, personalized case management, the CCW can assist with almost anything that feels challenging, overwhelming, or stressful, including housing and food security (including SNAP applications or connections to community-centric supports); medical applications; unemployment (accessing benefits) and job-seeking; and referrals for mental health care, physical health care, or supportive services. The Caring Communities for Mental Health Program also aims to reinforce the importance of understanding and prioritizing mental health and wellness as a foundational part of everyone’s whole-person health journey.
Contact: Kevin Whelley • 774-392-0911
Click to learn more about the Greater Scranton YMCA’s Caring Communities for Mental Health Project.
Through this initiative, a licensed therapist participates in Nurse-Family Partnership visits and delivers an in-home cognitive behavioral therapy program—Moving Beyond Depression. This evidence-based treatment program is specifically designed to complement home visiting initiatives; provide care for mothers; address, reduce, or eliminate depression; and foster healthy home environments. Integrating Moving Beyond Depression into Healthy Family Partnerships’ existing services has helped to reduce barriers to care and enhanced the health and wellbeing of mothers, children, and families. This in-home model embodies a systemic change in how mothers with mental illness can receive accessible, appropriate mental health care support in Wyoming County.
Contact: Maria Fay, LCSW • 570-996-2264
Click to learn more about Healthy Family Partnership.
This project delivers remote, accessible, and tailored mental health care for individuals with intellectual or developmental disabilities facing mental health difficulties. Keystone Human Services has implemented innovative technology to simplify assessments, integrate health records, and enable immediate care between counseling sessions. Utilizing technology in mental health support has enhanced patient engagement in alignment with treatment plans and proactively notifies staff in the event of a crisis. By automating administrative responsibilities, the system has improved access to care, lessened provider workloads, and minimized wait times for clinical services.
Contact: Kris Weaver • 717-232-7509
Click to learn more about Keystone Human Services.
The Wright Center for Community Health has integrated Mental Health Certified Peer Specialists (CPS) into its established peer support service line. The Wright Center has conducted community outreach to educate and inform local mental health service agencies about the advantages of peer specialists and collaborated with an approved vendor to provide certification training for two groups of candidates from the local mental health service community. This project is a deliberate response to well-documented regional health care workforce shortages. Incorporating peer staff into service teams broadens diversity among providers in mental health settings—leading to improved patient outcomes, reduced need for higher levels of care, and less burden on higher-level clinicians. Introducing the CPS position has lowered health care costs and increased the number of individuals served by the agency and the local mental health community. Perhaps, more importantly, this project opens new doors for local individuals with lived experience to serve others and “pay it forward” as part of the broader health care community.
Contact: Scott Constantini • 570-499-1290
Click to learn more about The Wright Center for Community Health's Peer Specialist Training Program.
United Neighborhood Centers is committed to providing culturally sensitive mental health services and tailored interventions. Through its Multicultural Wellness Program, the organization employs a licensed social worker to engage with diverse communities and offer a range of mental health services, including counseling, peer support, and crisis intervention. The social worker also partners with local clinics to ensure coordinated care and with other community partners to help individuals connect with resources in their local community. The Multicultural Wellness Program addresses specific needs of diverse populations, reduces stigma through education, provides services in clients' preferred languages, and incorporates cultural understanding into care delivery. This program aims to foster trust and promote long-term engagement in mental health services.
Contact: Terilynn Brechtel • 570-346-0759 ext. 303
Click to learn more about United Neighborhood Centers of NEPA.
The team at Wayne Memorial Community Health Centers—a designated Federally Qualified Health Center in Northeastern PA—has implemented an Integrated Behavioral Health Model within its primary care facilities. To normalize behavioral health care, improve patient access, reduce stigma, and increase the likelihood that patients engage in recommended mental and behavioral health care support, the center has hired and integrated Licensed Clinical Social Workers (LCSWs) to deliver solution-based interventions and brief therapy. The on-site LCSWs support primary care providers with mental health management, develop treatment plans, and offer consultations to enhance patient access and care. Offering mental health services in the same welcoming, familiar environment where patients already receive primary care helps reduce barriers to care and improves whole-person health outcomes.
Contact: Terri Lacey • 570-253-8451
Click to learn more about Wayne Memorial Community Health Centers.
Click here to learn more about our Health Care Access and Quality Focus Area.
