Our Mission
To serve under-resourced and justice-involved youth and adults through social-emotional skill building, cognitive-behavioral development, fraternity and relationship building. StreetSolid’s small-group programming is focused on reducing recidivism in our justice-involved populations and cultivating the human potential that resides within in us all.
Our History
After several of StreetSolid's group facilitators had been working in the field for 5 years, StreetSolid was incorporated as a non-profit 501(c)3 corporation in 2016 under the direction of Dr. Vincent Morelli, Ron Johnson, Tay McGee, and a founding board of directors including; Corbette Doyle, Stephen Young, Sean Roach, Curtis Baysinger, Michael Kenner, Alvin Pearman, Howard Gentry, Millard Collins, and Sada Garba.
Our Reach / Our Partners
Since 2016 we have served over 1500 participants and we have recently expanded our programing to a much wider participant base. We are now partnered with Meharry Medical College, Vanderbilt University, the Metro Nashville Public Schools, the Davidson County Juvenile Courts, the Sumner County Jails, Men of Valor, 413 Strong and the RISE program, Middle Tennessee’s first Federal Re-entry program.
Our Programing
In 2010 StreetSolid began developing its groundbreaking Social, Emotional, Cognitive (SEC) curriculum to help youth between the ages of 11-18 who had been caught up in the juvenile justice system. It was developed with the help of Meharry Medical College, Vanderbilt University’s Peabody School of Education, The Rand Corporation, USAID Senior Specialists and youth referred from the Davidson County Juvenile Courts.
Skills and discussions focus on identity, integrity, self esteem, communication skills, decision making, emotional recognition and management, resilience, relationships and leadership. The program is trauma informed, built on best teaching methods, and administered using the principles of Group Therapy.
Since 2010 StreetSolid’s curriculum has been refined by the input and life-experiences of our group facilitators and by feedback from out adolescent and adult participants. Additional enhancement has been influenced by our interactions with the professionals at HomeBoy Industries, Cares Mentoring, the Emerson Collective and others. We continually update our curriculum with the latest scientific data from the cognitive neurosciences, psychological sciences, pedagogical sciences (best teaching methods), as well with new and relevant cultural references - all bent on engaging and enhancing our participant’s lives.
Academics
StreetSolid’s programing is an evidenced informed curriculum, constructed after an extensive literature review of the latest medical,, psychologic and sociological data. the lived experience of our CBT certified facilitators brings this science to life. Ongoing research is currently being conducted under a CDC grant and is being led by Meharry Medical College Department of Family and Community Medicine.
Our Ongoing Focus
StreetSolid's programs have been used with great success with several of our partner organizations including; the Davidson County Juvenile Courts, The Sumner County Jails, Tennessee's Federal Inmate Reentry Program, Nashville's GANG Program, Metro Nashville Public Schools, Meharry's Medically Assisted Addiction Clinics, 413 Strong, Men of Valor and others.
In fulfilling our mission, we are committed to maintaining our lifelong mentoring relationships and to continually update and improve our curriculum using the latest and the most resonating cultural references. We are committed to continually improving our facilitators’ teaching methods and to integrate feedback from those participating in our SEC discussions and activities. In addition, StreetSolid is committed to offer social-emotional-cognitive training to other facilitators who are working with similar populations in similar organizations.