Children arriving at the Orangewood Children and Family Center often face significant challenges, having been removed from their homes due to allegations of abuse, neglect or exploitation.
To support these vulnerable youth, Orangewood redesigned multiple spaces on its grounds to provide a safe and nurturing environment equipped with intentional sensory items and calming activities.
The WellEd team from the Orange County Department of Education recently partnered with the County of Orange Social Services Agency to transform four key areas of the facility using trauma-informed and biophilic design with the help of grant funding awarded to the OCDE Foster Youth Services Coordinating Program. These research-backed methods aim to create spaces of calm that promote well-being and recovery.
OCDE’s Integrated Student Supports unit teamed up with representatives from the Social Services Agency for a ribbon-cutting ceremony last month, unveiling the rooms that will aid students, visiting family members and Orangewood staff.
While attending the event, County Superintendent of Schools Dr. Stefan Bean recognized the efforts made through this partnership to better engage with the approximately 50 students who receive care on a daily basis.
“These kids that you serve are the most vulnerable in our community and you serve them in such a warm, welcoming and embracing way,” Dr. Bean said. “This setting is just a symbol of that heart, love and warmth that each of you exhibit for our kids.”
“We are grateful for our longstanding partnership with the Orange County Department of Education,” said An Tran, director of the OC SSA. “Since the beginning, they have bolstered our foster youth’s education journey, preventing gaps through the on-site William Lyon School. The renovations across the Orangewood campus are shining examples of how we as a community can come together to support children when they need us the most.”
The remodeled spaces include a family visitation center, an art sensory and wellness room, the First Step cottage where young people reside when entering the facility, and an education-focused area for OCDE Foster Youth Services Coordinating Program educational liaisons. Each space is tailored to meet a child’s specific needs — whether it’s providing calming environments for assessments, enhancing their engagement with staff support, cultivating their creativity or offering educational support.
“They [the students] go through a lot, so they just know that this is a place for them where they can be a little bit more vulnerable … they know that someone here is going to be able to listen and make them feel safe,” said Eric Garza, ACCESS and Orangewood educational liaison for the Foster Youth Services Coordinating Program.
For more information about OCDE’s efforts to support mental health and wellness through physical spaces on school campuses and within the community, visit the department’s Student Wellness Centers webpage.