In 2008, Youth Villages began helping a 14-year-old Atlanta boy named Donald. Struggling with aggressive behavior and developmental delays, he spent nine years in state custody because his mother couldn’t raise him and his father continually failed to meet requirements to get him back. Growing up, the boy needed constant supervision in a psychiatric facility. Through a partnership with Georgia’s Division of Family and Children Services, we were asked to find a permanent home for Donald. This is the very tough work we specialize in.
More than 3.5 million children are involved in our country’s child welfare, children’s mental health or juvenile justice systems each year. More than 425,000 children are growing up in foster care right now. The government spends billions of dollars every year attempting to help these children.
Georgia and other states are seeking the best solutions for these vulnerable children in a time of tight budgets and diminished federal resources. It’s a daunting task. But our partnerships with Georgia’s DFCS and the Department of Juvenile Justice are proving that an intensive focus on families can make all the difference for children, and for taxpayers.
Through DFCS, Youth Villages was assigned to use intensive in-home services to help more than 150 of Georgia’s most vulnerable children — children like Donald who were named in the federal Kenny A. lawsuit as being in state custody the longest. Working with the Department of Juvenile Justice, we established a continuum of care so youth can receive the most effective help in the most appropriate setting — on our Inner Harbour residential campus, in Douglasville, or at home.
In both partnerships, we used the power of family to help children safely in their own homes. By preserving or restoring families, we consistently achieve success rates twice that of traditional services for a fraction of the cost.
Recently we released a three-year report (www.youthvillages.org) on our Georgia partnerships. Of the 429 children and families helped through our intensive in-home services since 2008, 73 percent are living successfully at home with family six months after completing their program; 92 percent are in school or have graduated and 84 percent are crime-free. We follow these children and families for two years to determine long-term outcomes and provide accountability to both families and funders.
Donald’s dad had almost given up on getting his family back when our specialist knocked on his door. She helped him secure safe, affordable housing, gain employment and finally end a substance-abuse problem. Together, they taught Donald to manage his behavior outside of an institution and live at home successfully.
Georgia children’s services are on the right track, as successes such as Donald’s show. Both DFCS and the Department of Juvenile Justice should be applauded for their commitment to families and to holding providers accountable for achieving lasting success for children.
Patrick W. Lawler is chief executive officer of Youth Villages.
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