Project Grant H79SM091340

The Substance Abuse and Mental Health Services Administration awarded the University of Denver $600,000 on September 30, 2026, under the Center for Mental Health Services Projects of Regional and National Significance program (CFDA 93.532) to establish the NextGen Center for Adolescent Resilience and Empowerment (CARE), a national treatment and service adaptation center.

The center will refine the NextGen Resilience evidence-informed model, strengthen its evidence base, and develop training, products, and infrastructure to support high-fidelity implementation at child-serving sites across the nation. NextGen Resilience addresses healing from childhood trauma and builds resilience among adolescents and their caregivers by focusing on connection, healthy boundaries, physical health and well-being, and a strengthened internal locus of control—skills designed to protect against contemporary behavioral health risks including substance use disorders, process addictions, and negative effects of social media and excess screen time.

The University of Denver's Butler Institute for Families and the Kempe Center, an NCTSN-affiliated academic center for clinical treatment of child traumatic stress, partner to deliver the center's work. Performance occurs in Denver, Colorado, with a period of performance from September 30, 2026, through September 29, 2031. The center's capacity-building focuses on behavioral health, education, and juvenile justice professionals and systems serving trauma-exposed adolescents.