Hartford Children's Health Group Gets Grant For LGBTQ Children

Courtesy of Connecticut Children's

HARTFORD, CT – Connecticut Children’s announced Thursday it has been awarded a $132,000 Innovation Grant from The Tow Foundation to help it better serve LGBTQ youths, including transgender children.

This grant, given as part of The Tow Foundation’s newly created Innovation Fund, will support Connecticut Children’s work in developing and launching a first-of-its-kind secure web portal that will make transformative and innovative counseling services and resources available to LGBTQIA youth.

Launched in December 2021, The Tow Foundation Innovation Fund supports nonprofit organizations pursuing inventive approaches to three issue areas affecting children and their families: mental health; early intervention efforts in schools; and public health approaches to reducing gun violence.

Connecticut Children’s was chosen as one of only 10 Innovation Grant recipients out of a pool of over 400 applicants.

For the first time in its history, The Tow Foundation assembled a committee of experts, including directly impacted community members, to review applications and make grant recommendations.

Melissa Santos, PhD, Connecticut Children’s Division Head of Pediatric Psychology, William Zempsky, MD, Connecticut Children’s Division Head of Pain and Palliative Medicine, and Kevin Borrup, DrPH, JD, MPA, the Executive Director of Connecticut Children’s Injury Prevention Center will serve as co-principal investigators on the project.

Through this grant, Connecticut Children’s will work with community partners and the LGBTQIA community to develop the secure web portal, which will feature comprehensive, evidence-based educational materials, peer mentoring, and counseling services.

The portal will initially serve youth ages 8 to 24 in Connecticut, and will have a particular focus on serving transgender and gender diverse youth.

During future phases, Connecticut Children’s plans to open the portal to youth throughout New England and then expand it nationwide.

Beyond the benefit to the LGBTQIA population, the portal will make resources available to those who want to learn more and become allies for LGBTQIA youth.

“It is critical for LGBTQIA youth to have access to peer support and clinical counseling before a crisis occurs,” said Santos. “We know that LGBTQIA youth are at higher risk for suicide and often report feeling unsupported. This web portal will ensure LGBTQIA youth are able to access counseling services and resources in a safe and secure way.”

“This program could not come at a more critical time,” said Frank Tow, chair of the Innovation Fund Committee and vice president of The Tow Foundation Board of Directors. “When reviewing Connecticut Children’s application, it was easy to see how this unique approach to addressing the mental health needs of LGBTQ+ youth has the potential to change lives.”

As a grantee of The Tow Foundation, Connecticut Children’s will have an opportunity to participate in a cohort learning model alongside fellow Innovation Grant recipients.

For more information on The Tow Foundation Innovation Fund, visit towfoundation.org/innovation.

For more information on Connecticut Children's, visit this link.