FILIPINO MENTAL HEALTH INITIATIVE OF SAN FRANCISCO
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  • Home
  • About Us
    • Our Mission
    • Our Community
    • Our Team
  • Programs + Events
    • adua mental health scholarship 2021 >
      • adua clinicians 2021
      • Pamilya 2 Pamilya Facilitators 2021
    • Adult Mental Health First Aid Training Scholarship 2021
    • Buong Loob: Filipinx Student Wellness Internship >
      • Filipinx Student Wellbeing Conference 2022 >
        • Workshop Facilitators
        • Adult Ally Workshops
        • Youth Workshops
  • Resources
    • Adult Mental Health First Aid Training
    • Resource Guides
    • "Usap Tayo!" (Let's Talk)
  • Contact
    • Support Us
    • inquiries

Buong Loob: Filipinx Student Wellness internship

"A lil wholesome video which entails specific things people around us do that we appreciate. ;) We hope this provides an idea of what things adults can do to help us or show that we're cared for, in everyday life.  It also pinpoints things adults may not realize is very important to us in feeling loved, heard, supported, and comforted." -Filipinx Student Wellness Interns 2021
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A Mental Health Tool Kit for Adult Allies.  Digital media and video created by FMHI-SF "Filipinx Student Wellness Interns."
​ All rights reserved. Do not duplicate without permission. (2021)

Buong Loob: Filipinx Student Wellness Internship

buô: wholeness; loob: inner self

​The Buong Loob: Filipinx Student Wellness Internship is a youth, mental health education program that engages Filipina/o/x American identified 10th/11th/12th graders to learn about mental wellness in the context of their ethnic and socio-cultural experiences.  Students attend a series of mental health education workshops, participate in several community action projects, and explore college & career options alongside Filipinx identified mental health and wellness practitioners in the field.

Buong Loob is co-sponsored by San Francisco Unified School District's Office of College & Career Readiness and the Filipino Mental Health Initiative of San Francisco. 


The next application cycle for the Buong Loob: Filipinx Student Wellness Internship will occur mid-fall 2022. 

​Are you a rising 10th, 11th, or 12th grader who is interested in working with the Buong Loob program?  Complete a Student Interest Form to receive updates on future opportunities to intern with us.
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Buong Loob 2022 Interns at the 1st annual "Filipinx Student Wellbeing Conference," a youth-led mental health conference for Filipinx identified high schoolers. Photographed by Michelle Lapitan (2022).
Buong Loob Airmail Project Highlight Reel .  A mentorship project in collaboration with Galing Bata: Filipino Education Center. Video by Mark Belocura of Galing Bata FEC (2022). 

Buong Loob: Youth Contingency Internship
Filipnx Student Wellbeing Conference Planning

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Youth Contingency 2022 Interns, Christian S. & Jesa R. co-hosting the 1st annual "Filipinx Student Wellbeing Conference." Photographed by Michelle Lapitan (2022).

Program Overview

The Buong Loob Youth Contingency Internship is a service-learning program co-sponsored by the Filipino Mental Health Initiative of San Francisco and SFUSD's Office of College and Career Readiness. The Buong Loob Youth Contingency is a comprised of past and present Buong Loob: Filipinx Student Wellness Interns who plan, organize, and facilitate a day-long, mental health conference for Filipina/o/x and Filipina/o/x American identified high schoolers in San Francisco.

Youth leaders engage in a series of project-based learning activities to determine the wellness needs of SFUSD's Filipino & Filipina/o/x American high school population, identify culturally responsive mental wellness organizations/practitioners to address those needs, and create humanizing spaces of learning in the form of a conference. The Buong Loob Youth Contingency Internship happens concurrently with the Filipinx Student Wellness Internship. 

Buong Loob is co-sponsored by San Francisco Unified School District's Office of College & Career Readiness and the Filipino Mental Health Initiative of San Francisco. The next application cycle for this internship will occur mid-fall 2022. 
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Learn more about our inaugural Filipinx Student Wellbeing Conference held at San Francisco State University .

Meet our Team

Program Development

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 Harvey Lozada, MSW, PPSC (he/him/his)

Harvey Lozada is a fourth-generation FRISCOPINO.  He is an educator, community worker, healer, filmmaker, photographer, and visual storyteller.  Harvey’s healing journey began with community activism and engaging young people in the juvenile justice system. For over 18 years, he has dedicated his life to disrupting the school-to-prison pipeline through youth leadership development and culturally responsive counseling services for children and families throughout San Francisco. Harvey currently serves as a Transition Specialist at the San Francisco County Office of Education and Woodside Learning Center in San Francisco Unified School District.  He is a core member at the Filipino Mental Health Initiative of San Francisco and is co-founder of the "Buong Loob: Filipinx Student Wellness Internship" program.
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Verma Soria Zapanta, M.Ed (she/her/siya)

Verma Soria Zapanta is an educator, mental health advocate, and proud San Francisco native. Prior to delving into mental health and holistic wellness work, Verma was a high school Ethnic Studies History teacher in SFUSD, LAUSD, and taught/mentored graduate students in teacher education programs at UCLA and St. Mary’s College. She has over 16 years of experience in curriculum design, instructional coaching, and implementing school-wide educational frameworks that combine college-focused academics, rigorous technical education, work/project-based learning, and personalized student support. Verma serves as one of the Program Coordinators at the Filipino Mental Health Initiative of San Francisco (FMHI-SF) and is co-founder the "Buong Loob: Filipinx Student Wellness Internship" program.

Community Partners & Consultants

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(t) 415-355-4578  (e) sanjoset@sfusd.edu

Tiffany E. San Jose, MSW

Education Specialist, Work-Based Learning
College & Career Readiness
San Francisco Unified School District

https://www.sfusd.edu/departments/college-and-career-readiness
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Filipino Education Center: Galing Bata Program

FEC GALING BATA PROGRAM provides vital linguistically sensitive and culturally responsive services and resources to the Transitional Kindergarten - 8th Grade students enrolled at Bessie Carmichael/FEC throughout the school year and the summer, to their families, and the community in SOMA Pilipinas, the Filipino Cultural Heritage District in San Francisco. Social-emotional learning, restorative practices and trauma-informed care are embedded in their programming. Their staff are also certified in Mental Health First Aid and are screeners for behavioral health challenges or crises. They are committed to fostering safe spaces through building intentional and trusting relationships with students and families; spaces such as a weekly middle school lunch club to celebrate Filipino culture and identity, enrichment on wellness & resilience for middle school students, weekly parent support group (GB Chikahang Good Vibes), etc.

In their efforts to prioritize their students’ wellbeing, they work closely with school-day social workers, make student referrals to community resources for mental health and wellness support, are an active member of the Bessie/FEC Wellness Team and Bessie/FEC Coordinated Care Team, and collaborate with other organizations to address the mental health issues within our community (MHC, FMHI-SF, Incredible Years/Filipino Family Health Initiative, etc).

https://www.galingbata.org/​
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Geraldine Punzalan Lapitan, MSW, PPSC (she, her, siya)

Born and raised as a second generation Pinay in SF/DC, currently working as a School Social Worker at Denman Middle School in San Francisco Unified District after several years of working with youth all over the bay area in different educational and mental health backgrounds.

Community Sponsors

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Richmond Area Multi-Services​-Asian & Pacific Islander Mental Health Collaborative

RAMS, Inc. (Richmond Area Multi-Services) is a private, non-profit mental health agency that is committed to advocating for and providing community-based, culturally competent, and consumer-guided comprehensive services, with an emphasis on serving Asian & Pacific Islander Americans.  Founded in San Francisco’s Richmond District in 1974, RAMS offers comprehensive services that aim to meet the behavioral health, social, vocational, and educational needs of the diverse community of the San Francisco Area with special focus on the Asian & Pacific Islander American and Russian-speaking populations.   
https://ramsinc.org/prevention/
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Kababayan SFUSD

Kababayan SFUSD is an organization of Filipinx/a/o educators in San Francisco.  Our organization aims to:
  • Support the academic success and social-emotional well-being of Filipinx students
  • Improve the educational standards of the school system through the professional advancement of Kababayan members through leadership development, professional development, professional support, and networking.
  • Facilitate a firm connection to the Filipinx culture and the Philippines by fostering cultural events and programs, supporting local efforts to preserve the culture, and sponsoring initiatives connecting its members with other Filipinx educators in the region, state, country, and in the Philippines.
  • Unite Filipinx teachers and education workers within San Francisco Bay Area and the San Francisco Unified School District and align with other educators, education groups, alliances, and federations who share similar interests in advancing the interest of Filipinx students and other marginalized youth

https://sites.google.com/sfusd.edu/kababayan-sfusd/home
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SFUSD Office of College and Career Readiness 

Within SFUSD’s Division of Curriculum and Instruction, the Office of College and Career Readiness (CCR) provides direct services to students and supports teachers and counselors to increase the likelihood of students’ postsecondary success in college and career.

https://www.sfusd.edu/departments/college-and-career-readiness

Ways to Show Your Support

Monetary or In-Kind Donations

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Lay a donation via Paypal, Flipcause, or Venmo and add the note "BUONG LOOB." For in-kind donations (i.e.: school supplies, snacks, etc.), please contact Verma Zapanta (verma@bayanihancc.org).  Thank you for your generosity.
FILIPINO MENTAL HEALTH INITIATIVE-SAN FRANCISCO
"Together, we can end the stigma of mental health."
Bayanihan Community Center
1010 Mission Street, Suite B; San Francisco, CA 94103
fmhisf@bayanihancc.org