NIU among Illinois universities awarded state aid for students pursuing behavioral health

DeKALB - Northern Illinois University recently was awarded a portion of $4 million in state funding to support students pursuing careers in behavioral health, according to a news release from the Illinois Department of Human Resources.

The $4 million was distributed to 11 post-secondary education institutions across the state through the department’s Certified Recovery Support Specialist Success program.

The program is meant to prepare students for entry-level positions as behavioral health workers, particularly in the fields of mental health and substance use recovery.

Created by the Cannabis Regulation and Tax Act signed into law by Gov. JB Pritzker in 2019, the program is managed through the IDHS’s division of mental health. Funding comes from revenue collected across the state through adult recreational marijuana sales.

According to the release, the funding is meant to expand the amount of specialists who can begin to address the effects of criminalizing marijuana use and instead advocate for mental and health services which promote recovery and rehabilitation.

Grace B. Hou, secretary for the IDHS heralded the program.

“It provides quality training and education for individuals in recovery,” Hou said in a news release. “Individuals who complete the training will provide quality services for people with mental health and substance use challenges. The behavioral health workforce will benefit from the addition of these skilled workers.”