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Introduction

Tunnels and Cliffs: A Guide for Workforce Development Practitioners and Policymakers serving Youth with Mental Health Needs was developed as part of the U.S. Department of Labor’s Office of Disability Employment Policy’s (ODEP’s) work to help workforce development practitioners, administrators, and policymakers increase their understanding of youth with mental health needs and the supports necessary to help them transition into the workforce successfully.

Youth with mental health needs (MHN) often face unemployment, underemployment, and discrimination when they enter the workforce. Employment data show that individuals with serious mental illness have the lowest level of employment of any group of people with disabilities. As a result, large numbers of youth with both diagnosed and undiagnosed mental health needs who are transitioning into young adulthood, to the world of work, and to postsecondary education are likely to experience significant difficulties.

This guide provides practical information and resources for youth service practitioners. In addition, it provides policymakers, from the program to the state level, with information to help them address system and policy obstacles in order to improve service delivery systems for youth with mental health needs.

The guide’s framework is the Guideposts for Success. The Guideposts are research based and describe components that all youth need to transition successfully to adulthood as well as modifications for youth with disabilities. The Guideposts for Success for Youth with Mental Health Needs include all the elements of the original Guideposts as well as additional specific needs relating to youth with mental health needs.

View the Guideposts for Success for Youth with Mental Health Needs (Chapter 3 of Tunnels & Cliffs)

Download The Complete Guide

Download the entire guide in PDF* (118 pages, 690 KB)
Download the entire guide in MS Word* (171 pages, 939 KB) .
*Please note: This is a large document, download time will be longer for users with slower connections.

Download Sections

Cover, Table of Contents, Acknowledgements, Purpose
View cover, table of contents, etc. in PDF (8 pages, 120 KB)
View cover, table of contents, etc. in MS Word (8 pages, 220 KB)

Chapter 1 describes the mental health landscape encountered by youth, including facts, statistics, and the conflicting and confusing terminology used to describe mental health needs and conditions.
View Chapter 1 in PDF (8 pages, 80 KB)
View Chapter 1 in MS Word (11 pages, 171 KB)

Chapter 2 describes the transition cliff that separates youth and adult service systems and the service tunnels that youth with mental health needs (MHN) must negotiate to access the assistance and support needed to maximize independence.
View Chapter 2 in PDF (8 pages, 182 KB)
View Chapter 2 in MS Word (11 pages, 174 KB)

Chapter 3 introduces the Guideposts for Success for Youth with MHN and discusses issues of concern to youth service practitioners serving youth with MHN.
View Chapter 3 in PDF (42 pages, 252 KB)
View Chapter 3 in MS Word (61 pages, 371 KB)

Chapter 4 discusses policy issues related to serving youth with MHN and suggests actions for program administrators and state and local policymakers.
View Chapter 4 in PDF (24 pages, 146 KB)
View Chapter 4 in MS Word (37 pages, 264 KB)

Appendix A contains a list of web-based resources.
View Appendix A in PDF (12 pages, 89 KB)
View Appendix A in MS Word (18 pages, 255 KB)

Appendix B contains the references.
View Appendix B in PDF (12 pages, 93 KB)
View Appendix B in MS Word (18 pages, 253 KB)

Appendix C contains a list of acronyms.
View Appendix C in PDF (4 pages, 51 KB)
View Appendix C in MS Word (4 pages, 145 KB)

Order the Guide

NCWD/Youth publications can be downloaded for free from this website. Multiple copies can be purchased by contacting the Collaborative at contact@ncwd-youth.info.