April Newsletter
Updates From Us
We're thrilled to share some exciting updates on all the great things happening at Oregon Infant Mental Health Association (ORIMHA) this month.
Membership Survey.
We invite you to fill out the 2025 ORIMHA Member Survey, which should take about 15 minutes.
This survey aims to better understand the current needs and overall well-being of the infant, early childhood, and early relational health workforce. By gaining this knowledge, we can provide enhanced support and improve the well-being of the workforce.
Your participation in this survey is completely voluntary. Your answers will be confidential and data will be used for evaluation purposes and to help guide ORIMHA’s efforts. Data collected from this survey will be reported back to ORIMHA membership in summary form, and no individual data will be shared.
The summary results from this survey will be posted on the ORIMHA website by late spring. This survey will close on April 18th.
ORIMHA will provide a $10 Starbucks e-gift card to the first 200 respondents who complete at least 90% of the survey. Your email will be collected at the end of the survey for awarding gift cards to be emailed after June 1, 2025.
Issue Brief.
Please check out ORIMHA’s third Issue Brief, Reflective Supervision/Consultation. Nichole Paradis, MSW, LMSW, IMH-E®, discusses how reflective supervision/consultation (RS/C) supports the infant and early childhood workforce, outlines systemic challenges, and highlights the need for greater inclusivity.
Click here to read additional Issue Briefs.
Recognizing Nan LeRoy.
As ORIMHA celebrates 10 years as a non-profit organization, we reflect on how grateful we are for the dedicated individuals who have led and shaped our organization over the years. This recognition extends to our founders, who spearheaded the creation of ORIMHA, and to our past and current leaders and members who have tirelessly contributed to our mission.
We would like to use this space to recognize a founding or impactful board member each month. This month we would like to honor Nan LeRoy.
Nan is the mother of 3 adult children, the stepmother of one, and grandmother of 8. After working as an outpatient therapist for Children's Home Society in Vancouver for 12 years, Nan worked in her own part-time private practice and worked as an Early Childhood Mental Health Consultant on the Morrison Child and Family Services Early Childhood team for 21 years providing consultation to Early Head Start staff and various parenting classes including: Incredible Years, Balancing Lessons, Circle of Security parenting, as well as Reflective Consultation for staff. Nan has taken many trainings over the years with some of the pioneers in the field such as Stanley Greenspan, training to do the 20-week Circle of Security group, a year of Infant Observation from the psychoanalytic community in Seattle, and the great offering at Zero to Three conferences.
Nan has been an avid cyclist and takes great pleasure in being active outdoors. She is proud to say she has climbed Mt. Hood, participated in the Hood River swim of the Columbia River from near the Washington shore to Oregon shore, and many long bike rides including the Seattle to Portland ride. She is a long time meditator and has been a yoga teacher. She is a qualified MBSR teacher and has taught several MBSR classes in Portland in person and online. Nan enjoys traveling to other countries, enjoys gardening on a small scale, singing whenever she can, and doing art and sand tray!
Thank you, Nan, for all of your efforts.
Nan LeRoy at ORIMHA’s most recent gathering in Portland. Nan is pictured raising her hand, recognizing herself as one of ORIMHA’s founding members.
Every Child Belongs.
ORIMHA has a strong commitment to racial equity in all of its work, including in its role as Central Entity for Every Child Belongs. Broadly speaking, ORIMHA actively collaborates to enhance professional capacity, fostering deep self-reflection to raise awareness of our individual roles and responsibilities. We strive to take action within systems of oppression and intentionally work toward justice. Recognizing that "Discriminatory policies and practices that harm adults harm the infants and children in their care," we engage in collective efforts across systems to keep families, babies and young children at the center of policy conversations to remove barriers to high quality services.
In the work we do on behalf of Every Child Belongs, ORIMHA seeks to uncover our own unconscious biases and to support others to reflect on theirs. We strive to acknowledge and address the ways unconscious biases show up in systems, professional development, IECMH Consultation service delivery, and the care of infants, young children, and their families. We interuppt systems of oppression that contribute to the use of exclusionary practices in early care and learning settings. Those systems of oppression include racism, sexism, ableism, homophobia, transphobia, and xenophobia. We lean into the shared humanity across the unique diversity across the state of Oregon to encourage reflection and self-awareness.
Job Openings.
NeighborImpact is hiring an Infant and Early Childhood Mental Health Consultation Advisor. Click here to learn more and apply!
MountainStar is looking to hire a new part time (20-hour) position to work throughout the Warm Springs Reservation. Click here to find out more about the Outreach Coordinator position. Contact hr@mtstar.org with questions or interest.
MountainStar Family Relief Nursery is recruiting an Early Childcare Specialist to join their team in Bend, Oregon. Click here for more information about the Early Childcare Specialist position. Contact hr@mtstar.org with questions or interest.
Scholarship Opportunities.
Did you know you may be eligible for scholarships to help pay for professional development opportunities? Check out the Portland State University scholarship page for more information.
Congratulations are in order!
Congratulations to our new endorsees:
Maiko Hata
Chelsie Hugo
Breanna Sandefur
Be a voice for babies, families, and the community.
Make a donation today.
Are you in need of reflective supervision?
ORIMHA has a Reflective Supervision Registry where you can find a list of Infant Mental Health Mentors and Infant Mental Health Specialists. Click below to access the registry. AND ORIMHA is offering low-cost group sessions. If you are interested, please email andrea@or-imha.org for more information.
Do you have questions about Endorsement?
Did you know ORIMHA offers virtual support office hours in both English and Spanish? Click the link below for more information. Office hours are located in the announcements section. You do not need to log in to view.
