Congratulations to Redeemer Alumnus, Kathleen Davey (Class of 1997) for receiving the Australian Psychological Society’s inaugural Entrepreneur of the Year Award
for spearheading the rapid transformation of the Secret Agent Society (SAS) Small Group Program into a sophisticated digital health system.
The SAS resilience-building programs empower children with identified social and emotional goals, such as children diagnosed with autism, attention deficit hyperactive disorder (ADHD) and anxiety disorders.
SAS is a fun, internationally acclaimed program that teaches emotion regulation and social skills to children aged 8 to 12 years. Its evidence-based curriculum features the popular espionage-themed SAS computer game, child and parent group meetings, teacher tip sheets, a home school communication and rewards system and weekly home missions.
Kathleen recognised early in the pandemic that families and children would need greater support with the extra uncertainty, and concerns for mental health and the adaption of services would be critical when face-to-face wasn’t an option. She was instrumental in transforming the program into an entirely digital platform, enhancing the experience for all involved and expanding the opportunity to rural based children.
Kathleen is excited for the future of SAS delivery and the opportunity to help even more families. “We’ve had to step away from how we’ve ‘always done things’ and embrace change and innovation. I hope that SAS can be an example of integrating clinician-led services with technology to not replace, but enhance, our services – and not only for stability during the pandemic, but long-term.”
We love your passion for helping young people to feel happier, calmer and to make new friends – which are all core skills the young people of the future need. Thank you, Kathleen, for helping to make the world a better place.
We encourage you to find out more about Autism CRC or Secret Agent Society.
