New Groton youth counselor focused on empowering children, helping families

Dec. 27--GROTON -- Groton Youth Counselor Therese Alexander-Ssebagala sees herself as a warrior for children.

"I think what I'm always trying to do is help children to understand that they always have the power to accomplish things -- not to let their age or their size stop them," she said, adding that she then also shows them safe ways to express themselves, and that it's OK to do so.

Alexander-Ssebagala has hit the ground running since she was hired in late August as Groton Human Services' new youth counselor, agency Director Marge Fondulas said. The position combined two previous positions of a part-time youth counselor and a full-time Family Support Center counselor.

Alexander-Ssebagala is facilitating, with youth counselor Stephen Pulaski, an anti-bullying program for fourth- and fifth-graders at Northeast Academy Arts Magnet Elementary School, and working to roll out a new program called "Project Joy" at Cutler Arts and Humanities Magnet Middle School.

A licensed clinical social worker, she also provides short-term youth counseling and helps handle Juvenile Review Board cases and student support referrals from Robert E. Fitch High School.

While she primarily is focused on youth services, her remaining time is spent on programs with the Groton Family Support Center, including supporting and guiding parents and caregivers and continuing programs, such as the Grandparents Raising Grandchildren Support Group and the Nurturing Families Program, Fondulas said.

Alexander-Ssebagala also serves on the Groton Youth Advisory Council and helps out with the Human Services department's holiday distributions of food and toys, the Groton Food Locker and the United Way Mobile Food Pantry.

Always wanted to help

Alexander-Ssebagala began her career in social work in 2001 as a child and family counselor for Catholic Charities in New Jersey, after first starting out in business.

When she moved to Connecticut in 2007, Alexander-Ssebagala, who holds a bachelor's degree and a master's degree from Fordham University, began working in the addiction field, first as a primary therapist at Natchaug Hospital and then as a clinician at Stonington Institute.

She said she wanted to go back to working with families and children, so she applied to the Groton job.

"I've always just wanted to help and be helpful," said Alexander-Ssebagala, who drew inspiration for her career helping families and children from her mother.

Alexander-Ssebagala, who is from Jamaica, immigrated to the United States when she was 9 1/2 and grew up in New York City. Alexander-Ssebagala and her sister were raised by her mother and father, but her mother became a single parent shortly after arriving in the United States when her father passed away in Jamaica.

She said she tries to embody her mother: an adventurous spirit and a strong, intelligent, intuitive, caring and loving person who was always looking to help someone, advocated for her family, who all lived in the same neighborhood, and saw education as the top priority. She said she understands the responsibilities placed on single parents and what families go through.

Alexander-Ssebagala, a Stonington resident who is married and has a daughter in high school, said her family is her passion and she's like every other family trying to find the balance.

"I think people connect with me because I feel like I'm very real," she said. "I don't mince words, especially with the teenagers. I try to be as real and down to earth as possible, even with parents, and I let them know that I get it. I understand, but this is the way it is. This is what we all have to do."

Community, school programs

In her new position, Alexander-Ssebagala has helped start new programs, while continuing existing ones.

While at Natchaug Hospital, she was trained in "Project Joy" a program that works with school-aged children who have experienced any kind of traumatic experience, such as depression, anxiety, being bullied or growing up in poverty, and helps them connect with themselves and the people around them, she said.

She is rolling out the program first at Cutler Middle School and would like to bring it to other schools, as well, she said.

Over an 8-week period, a group of about 10 children will participate in a weekly after-school session that features games to grow creativity, laughter, silliness and confidence -- everything that trauma takes away, she said. The group will sit around in a circle and talk about the positive things they did, what they can do better next time, and how they felt, which then gives the children an opportunity to open up about what they are experiencing at school or at home.

The program not only helps children talk about whatever may be stuck inside them, but also helps them make friends and encourages them to speak up for one another or tell a teacher, for example, if a child is being bullied, she said.

She's studying to become certified through SMART Recovery, a "community of mutual support group meetings that use science and self-empowerment to help people overcome" addiction, according to the organization's website. She would like to bring the support group to the high school level as a preventative tool to stop kids from starting any kind of experimentation with drugs or alcohol, or to get kids to stop if they started.

She also will be helping with initiatives coming up, including a calendar created from drawings by Groton third-graders on what makes them feel loved and safe, as part of Groton's Campaign Against Child Abuse.

Alexander-Ssebagala, who started a grassroots grandparents support group in Plainfield, N.J., while at Catholic Charities, is continuing the Grandparents Raising Grandchildren Support Group in Groton. She said Diane Schrage, who has retired, "did an awesome job" running and growing the group.

The group offers support to grandparents and is an opportunity for them to meet other grandparents and families, advise one another on community resources available, listen to speakers and have a place to come and have a cup of coffee and talk, Alexander-Ssebagala said.

"They are just really awesome, awesome families. They really share a lot. They cry, they laugh and they love their kids," she said, adding that she'll do whatever she can to support the group.

Alexander-Ssebagala also has reached out to the Naval Submarine Base, local schools and private agencies to introduce herself and connect with other service providers, Fondulas said.

"Therese brings a wealth of experience to her position, coupled with a lot of enthusiasm and energy and a winning personality," Fondulas said.

k.drelich@theday.com

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