Two training programs in rural Iowa demonstrated community helpers can be trained to function effectively in rural mental health service delivery. Comparable training programs sponsored by the center are currently in progress. Training these natural helpers in interpersonal skills is an important service of community mental health centers. (Author)

The Labor Educational Advising Project (LEAP) was inaugurated in 1979 at Des Moines Area Community College to facilitate the provision of educational advising services within organized labor in Central Iowa. LEAP worked with local unions and union members to train a network of peer volunteers to provide educational counseling to workers interested…