JUNTOS was established in 2012 to address the impact of trauma in Lennox schools through a collaboration between New Visions Foundation (now the Coalition for Engaged Education) and the Lennox School District. Today, JUNTOS is a project of Community Partners. As the fiscal agent, Community Partners provides the structure and a full range of administrative and financial services that allow JUNTOS to focus on our mission as we grow.

Seed funding from the Gary Saltz Foundation allowed JUNTOS to hire a team of clinicians to effectively provide coordinated mental health services and parenting classes to the Lennox community. In honor and recognition of the Latino-rich community, this project was christened with the Spanish word JUNTOS, which means a group of persons joined for a common purpose.  

In its first year of operation (2012-2013), JUNTOS set a goal of serving between 60 and 75 students. JUNTOS leadership decided to keep the number of clients limited to maintain a manageable therapist to client ratio and give clients a feeling of individual care and sense of family support. However, this project number was greatly exceeded by the end of year one. The needs of the community were profound. An evaluation team review of data collected revealed that a total of 297 students and families received a combination of individual and family mental health services (including crisis and group work) and parenting education.  

Since its inception, JUNTOS has brokered partnerships with the UCLA Department of Social Welfare, Leap and Associates, Echo Parenting & Education, EduCare, National Teen Leadership Program, A Window Between Worlds, EduCare Foundation, the Alliance for Children’s Rights, trauma-focused therapy specialists, and key members of the Lennox School District and community in its efforts to create a progressive and thoughtful model for treating and preventing trauma in the Lennox community. In 2016, JUNTOS’ work was recognized by Community Partners with the Albert R. Rodriguez Civic Legacy Honors award. Today, JUNTOS serves over 345 students and 125 families, providing a wide array of student wellness services, family services, and school staff services.

After its first year of operation, JUNTOS contracted with the Leap and Associates research team to conduct a thorough evaluation of its programs and has continued to maintain this investment in subsequent years. The evaluations use both qualitative and quantitative data to measure the impact of JUNTOS programs. In all that it has accomplished in its short three years, JUNTOS has established proof of concept, specifically that a school-based wellness model is able to serve as a foundational platform able to combat the many complex barriers to service provisions that members of the Lennox community have experienced for generations. District employees witness first hand scores of unsuccessful outside referral efforts, as Lennox residents share the various barriers that render these well-intended referrals unfulfilled. From transportation limitations, to the fear that undocumented status brings to a caretaker unwilling to risk residency status, to the stigma often associated with mental health services, JUNTOS has been able to capitalize on the inherent trust that resides within the school walls and the trust that families instill in the school staff. Thus, the JUNTOS team continues to find new avenues for engaging the community and is watching with pride as elements of the vision and mission statements are taking shape.

Evaluations show that parents who participate in the parenting classes conceptualized the experience as one that improves their lives and the lives of their families, and report having shared class resources with family members and friends. Individuals receiving individual and family therapy services have reflected on their experiences in therapy as integral to the healing process. Through its Family Services, JUNTOS is strengthening families and helping parents/caregivers create supportive, nurturing and safe environments in the home to help youth thrive.

JUNTOS is led by Emily Cummins Polk, M.S.W, Social Emotional Learning Coordinator for the Lennox District, as well as Director of JUNTOS. Ms. Polk has dedicated her entire career to serving the community of Lennox and has presented at dozens of conferences over the years on developing integrated community based supports and trauma informed services.

Key staff include Ariel Wrye, curriculum specialist and staff liaison, and a team of dedicated social work interns. JUNTOS staff is on-site weekly at all Lennox Schools to provide coordinated services and supports. Juntos has provided placements for over 28 social work interns from a variety of social work graduate programs.

In 2016, JUNTOS was selected as one of four recipients of the Albert R. Rodriguez civic legacy honor from a pool of over 125 non-profit agencies incubated by Community Partners.