A free two-part Mental Health First Aid certification course is being offered to Chula Vista residents on two 4-hour Monday evenings in November and participants are required to attend both evenings. The eight-hour class is designed to improve mental health literacy and give first responders, volunteers and people who work with the general public skills to help someone who has or is developing a mental health problem or crisis. Classes are scheduled on Monday, November 5, and Monday, November 19, from 6 to 10 p.m. both evenings. The class will be held at the Chula Vista City Council Chambers, located at 276 Fourth Avenue. 

Seating is limited to the first 175.  Offered by Chula Vista CERT (Community Emergency Response Team), this course provides valuable tools to respond to psychiatric emergencies and to help identify the signs and symptoms of someone with mental illness. Graduates become certified for three years through the National Council for Behavioral Health. Participants must attend both days to earn their certificate. Young adults under the age of 18 must be accompanied by a parent. 

Registration and attendance to Part 1 - Mental Health First Aid is required in order to attend this class.