Support for students' health and resilience
Official title: Supporting Student Health and Resiience
Funded at California State University Northridge · NIH-11163307 · Data updated 2026-11-12
A school-based program using art, group projects, and social-emotional skills to help adolescents whose family members have been incarcerated stay connected, do better in school, and feel healthier.
Quick facts
| Grant type | NIH-funded research |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | California State University Northridge NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Northridge, United States) |
| Project start | August 10, 2022 |
| Project end | June 30, 2027 |
| Funding year | 2025 |
| Award (this year) | $331,875 |
| NIH project number | 5SC1GM144183-04 |
| Project ID | NIH-11163307 on NIH RePORTER |
Who could benefit from this research
✓Could help
Ideal participants are adolescents whose parent, sibling, or close relative has been incarcerated and who attend one of the participating schools, especially in low-income communities.
✕Less likely to help
Youth who have not experienced household incarceration or who do not attend participating schools are unlikely to receive direct benefit from this specific program.
What this research studies
If someone in your family has been jailed, this program brings activities like creative arts, writing, and community projects into school to build emotional skills and meaningful connections with peers and caring adults. The program (Pain of the Prison System, POPS) is offered in some schools while other similar schools continue as usual so researchers can compare outcomes over time. Students will be followed for several years and information will be collected on behavior, substance use, school attendance, and emotional wellbeing. The work is a four-year, school-based effort focused on adolescents in communities with higher rates of family incarceration.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, the program could lower substance use and behavioral problems and improve mental health and school engagement for youth affected by household incarceration.
How similar studies have gone: Other school-based social-emotional and arts programs have shown promise for improving behavior and mental health, though results vary and this program is tailored to youth with family incarceration.
Where this research is happening
-
California State University Northridge
Northridge, United States Active
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Forster, Myriam — California State University Northridge
- Study coordinator: Forster, Myriam
Related research
Other NIH-funded projects on the same topics.
-
Thermoregulatory RNAs: discovering how microbes sense temperature
Scientists will study RNA elements that help bacteria and related organisms sense heat and adapt, with a focus on pathogens and gut microbes, to uncover new targets for fighting infections.
-
Antimicrobial Peptides: How well they work in realistic infections
A scientist team will study how antimicrobial peptides work against bacteria in conditions that resemble real infections, with the goal of understanding their true potential.
-
Genomic and ecological study of Akkermansia in human milk sugars
Researchers are studying how different Akkermansia bacteria interact with core human milk sugars to understand how these gut microbes influence health.
-
Genetic interactions shaping stem cell behavior in fruit fly intestines
Scientists study how teamed-up gene targets of master regulators influence how intestinal stem cells grow and differentiate in fruit flies, with the goal of guiding regenerative strategies.
-
How stress, discrimination, and environmental racism affect health in Latino youth
This project measures how ongoing stress—including racial discrimination and harmful environmental conditions—affects stress-related body systems in Latino adolescents and young adults to help spot those at higher risk for type 2 diabetes.
-
Structural dynamics of G protein signaling in health and disease
A patient-friendly look at how GPCR signaling works in the body and why it matters for many conditions.
About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page.