On January 15, CASES’ Ann-Marie Louison, Director of Adult Behavioral Health Programs, received the The Harp Commitment Award at the annual Howie the Harp graduation ceremony. The Harp Commitment Award is presented to individuals from organizations that show a strong dedication to hosting and hiring participants from the Howie the Harp Peer Specialist Training Program.

The Howie the Harp Advocacy Center is a peer-run training and advocacy agency that provides employment resources to people with psychiatric disabilities. The Peer Training Program connects people with a history of psychiatric disorders with employment opportunities in Human Services. In 2006, the Howie the Harp Peer Specialist training program recognized CASES’ leadership in the employment of peer specialists. CASES continues to integrate consumer perspectives into its work by using peer specialists to help serve its clients more effectively. To date, CASES has provided employment or training to 22 of Howie the Harp’s trainees and graduates.

Dwayne Mayes, Director of the Howie the Harp Advocacy Center, said Louison won the award because she has “particularly shown a commitment to HTH by not only providing employment opportunities to our participants, but have also assisted in the training and mentoring process of individuals we serve who have multiple barriers to employment.”

Louison joined CASES in 1999 and became the Director of Mental Health Programs in 2002. In 2011, CASES merged its Criminal Court and Mental Health programs into a new program group, Adult Behavioral Health, which Ms. Louison currently leads.