Chad’s Legacy Project believes Certified Peer Counselors represent a new front-line service in the chain of care for Behavioral Health and Opioid Abuse. Lived experience and proof of the possibility of recovery gives the Certified Peer Counselor a unique ability to gain trust with an individual needing but is unwilling to receive care, for any number of reasons. A Peer Counselor also has the ability to help a client negotiate a complex health delivery system they would otherwise not be able to successfully navigate. New data shows this partnership improves access and management of care and ultimately outcomes. But as a prospective trainee, you probably understand this very well.

Often, we ask heroes to step forward, then we create obstacles for those very same people that block them from obtaining new heights. One key obstacle in expanding the Peer workforce is the reality that, while certification training is free, the cost of taking a week off of work to attend training if not already employed in the Behavioral Health world provides hardship. Sometimes it means a choice between food, rent, or training. The CLP Certified Peer Support Counselor Scholarship Fund will provide funds to offset that loss or lack of work. On an application basis, we are looking for those that do not have a clear path to training, who otherwise would be left to stand on the sidelines, but have the recovery experience and capability to become a successful Certified Peer Counselor. Chad's Legacy Project aims to help build the CPC workforce through the Chad's Legacy Project Certified Peer Counselor Training Scholarship.