About Us

ABOUT US  |  OUR VISION  |  OUR MISSION

The Philadelphia Compact grew out of the efforts of the Blue Ribbon Commission on Children’s Behavioral Health, a collective endeavor that established a framework for addressing all of the city’s children’s behavioral health needs.

With the leadership of the Department of Behavioral Health and Mental Retardation Services and the Department of Human Services, and the active participation of families, youth, providers, pediatricians, the faith community, academics, the major child serving systems (Courts, Health, Housing, Police, Prisons, Recreation, School District) and the community at large, the Philadelphia Compact is the effort to implement the recommendations of the Blue Ribbon Commission.

Background on the Blue Ribbon Commission on Children’s Behavioral Health

Recognizing that more must be done to care for children and to help them thrive, the Mayor created the Blue Ribbon Commission on Children’s Behavioral Health in February 2006.

The Mayor challenged the nearly 50 knowledgeable and committed Commission members to think about the behavioral health needs of Philadelphia’s children and to develop a framework and set of recommendations to improve the Philadelphia community’s ability to promote social and emotional wellness in all of the city’s children.

The Blue Ribbon Commission’s final report identified six goals and made 22 recommendations for achieving these goals. Intrinsic to the Commission’s overarching beliefs were:

1. the importance of children’s inherent resiliency to their social and emotional well-being;
2. everyone must take responsibility for and play a role in making sure the city’s children are socially and emotionally healthy.

The Philadelphia Compact

The Compact be guided by the work of the Blue Ribbon Commission. To accomplish its mission, the Philadelphia Compact is bringing together the community—families, educators, providers, city agencies, community leaders, elected officials and all who come in contact with children—to sign onto the Compact and play an ongoing role in ensuring and advocating for the healthy social and emotional well-being of all Philadelphia’s children.

Three distinct groups will carry out the mission of the Compact:

• The Council of Advocates: Family members and youth, community leaders, academics, advocates, providers, and others responsible for holding the community accountable for the implementation of the BRC goals and recommendations as well as supporting and advocating for the ongoing work of the Compact.
• Philadelphia Compact Leadership Council: City leadership, including Family Court, Philadelphia School District, and City Council members responsible for creating change.
• The Philadelphia Compact Action Groups: Content-knowledgeable individuals responsible for developing specific implementation plans.