The Neighborhood of Make Believe

The Neighborhood of Make Believe

by Angelina M. Hart, NYSPEP Coordinator

Recently, an old Fox News video resurfaced and was posted to Huffington Post. The video spends several minutes criticizing Mr. Rogers for telling children they are special, based on a statement by Don Chance, a finance professor at Louisiana State University, blaming Mr. Rogers for creating a generation of students who feel entitled.

Fox News also mentions the increase of narcissism among college students, based on a scientific study led by a psychiatrist at San Diego State University. However, in researching this piece, I found no mention of Mr. Rogers being cited as the causal factor for increased narcissism, aside from Don Chance's unqualified statement.

Interestingly, San Diego State University Psychology Professor Jean Twenge, writes, "The MTV show 'My Super Sweet Sixteen' has done 100 times more to normalize narcissism than Mr. Rogers ever did."

It should come as no surprise that -according to one source- Don Chance later contacted Fox News, retracting previous statements against Mr Rogers admitting, "I have no professional qualifications to evaluate the real problems or propose solutions." Moreover, Don Chance mistakenly confuses merit (earned) with value (intrinsic).

Sadly, irresponsible journalism has become mainstream. Most audience members don't know how to discern responsible journalism from inflated hype used to increase ratings, which saturates Fox's video. Fox could have cited the full source of the original statement against Mr. Rogers as coming from a finance professor. Audience members capable of critical reasoning skills might question his qualifications for making such a statement. Mentioning the scientific study on narcissism misleads by supposition that somehow the scientific study supports Don Chance's unqualified claim, which is a fallacy.

NYSPEP received a communication from Kenneth Barish, Ph.D., Clinical Associate Professor of Psychology at Weill Medical College, Cornell University, in response to the recently resurfaced Fox video. We invite you to read his response, published by Huff Post Parents (Huffington Post). Please CLICK HERE to view his qualified response.

Looking Upstream

In March 2013, two individuals involved in the William B. Hoyt Memorial Children and Family Trust Fund (Trust Fund)* passed away. James S. Cameron, founding executive director of Prevent Child Abuse NY*, was instrumental in establishing the Trust Fund and served on its board until retiring in 2000. For more than half a century, he was one of New York's prominent child welfare experts, providing leadership on child abuse and neglect treatment and prevention across the state and country.

Thomas W. Roach, Jr. served as chair of Office of Children and Family Services (OCFS) / Children and Family Trust Fund* from 1997-2007. A dedicated public servant, strong leader, and compassionate human being, he spent 50 years in public and private service improving the lives of the less fortunate and was a tireless protector of children.

The following tale illustrates the value of 'prevention':

Several villagers were found thrashing about in the middle of a river and crying out for help. A group of rescuers rushed to the riverbank to save them. One rescuer ran upstream along the bank instead. A short distance later, he discovered a bridge had partially given way, which caused the villagers to fall into the river. He noticed two more groups of villagers preparing to cross and prevented them walking across the broken bridge. Not only did he save the people, he also eliminated the additional burden that the rescuers would have faced. 

Similarly, the William B. Hoyt Memorial Children and Family Trust Fund continuously looks upstream and invests in prevention efforts. Trust Fund programs acknowledge the challenges that families face (such as poverty, mental health, and domestic violence) while focusing on strengths and partnering with families to identify challenges and skills.

NYSPEP is pleased to provide access to the NYS Children and Family Trust Fund 2012 Annual Report. This report is dedicated to Thomas Roach and James Cameron, and their incredible legacy that live in the programs they helped create and the people they touched. CLICK HERE to access the report.

* Prevent Child Abuse NY and OCFS / Children and Family Trust Fund are both NYSPEP Conveners.

NSYPEP MEMBER SPOTLIGHT: LORRAINE MCMULLIN

Lorraine McMullin

Lorraine McMullin is a member of NYSPEP's Steering Committee and Professional Development Workgroup. She is also a member of the ACEs Think Tank and Action Group, and the HEARTS Initiative.

Lorraine serves as Owner at McMullin Consulting Services, which provides workforce development training on Wellness and Stress Reduction, Trauma-Informed Care, Trauma Recovery, Engagement of Families, Integration of Peers into Program Design and Implementation, and Self-Care Strategies. She is also employed by The College of St. Rose’s Institute for Community Training and Research as their Program Manager and Lead Trainer.

Lorraine previously served as Director of Family and Trauma Initiatives at Mental Health Association in New York State. She attended State University College at Buffalo and studied Sociology and Special Education and earned a Bachelors degree in 1973.

Lorraine's core expertise includes Training, Workforce Development, Motivational Speaking, Program Development, Wellness and Stress Reduction Tools, Advanced Level Wellness Recovery Action Plan Facilitation and Grant Writing.

Lorraine is the selected keynote speaker for NYSPEP's upcoming Strong Roots Training Institutes slated for Fall 2013. Lorraine will present on the topic of trauma informed care / vicarious trauma followed by a process activity. Afternoon workshops focused around the topic of self-care include compassion fatigue and supervision (self, peer, and traditional supervision). 

Locations and dates are TBD (at the time this post was published). Please visit www.nyspep.org, click the "Join NYSPEP" button, and check the box to join our no-cost mailing list to receive the NYSPEP eNews, which will provide updates and registration links as they are announced. Information will also appear on our website's calendar as it becomes available.

Here's what others are saying about Lorraine via LinkedIn:

Lorraine is an effective trainer, sharing her extensive knowledge of social emotional development and recovery techniques. She contributes to the well being of all children and families through her tireless efforts. - Susan Perkins, Senior Policy Analyst at NYS Council on Children & Families.

Lorraine is very knowledgeable and up-to-date about events and trends across the broad field and incorporates best practices into her work. As an educator, Lorraine is able to communicate to a broad range of diverse audiences in intimate and large scale settings. - Lindsay Farrar, LMHC 

Her finely-tuned professional skills are complemented by her kind, caring, and thoughtful manner. I highly recommend working with Lorraine! - Heather Larkin, Assistant Professor and Social Worker

Her knowledge and expertise, commitment, and passion are impressive. - Katy Kaplan, Assistant Director at Temple University