Working With At-Risk Youth
It’s easy to see how many young people fall into the at-risk category. The availability of drugs and alcohol, the easy access to motor vehicles and the internet, rave parties and the like provide teens with a host of opportunities to get into trouble. And apart from the tragic human cost, politicians and others can see the economic cost of damaged youth.It is said that a failed marriage can cost the economy in a number of ways:
- Two living areas means an increase in the carbon footprint that family now makes.
- An increase in government grants and pensions.
- The costs associated withand others who suffer from family breakdown.
That is why governments of every level are paying attention to the subject. They are looking at how troubled youth are being treated. They are questioning the aims and methods of youth care programs.
The National Initiative Task Force on Youth-at-Risk is a federal initiative and typical of the action being taken regarding young people today and the troubles many find themselves in.
But of course while a national overview is essential, the nitty-gritty of caring for kids happens in the home and at a local level.
The federal government task force may talk long and hard about the role of schools in helping youth and ensuring that adequate funding is available on a continuous basis to support health departments and youth workers, but every parent with a troubled teen wants specific and immediate answers.
That is why such places as wilderness camps have become so popular and so successful. They target youth and address the problems which put the teens in the at-risk scenario.
The programs on offer by such camps have been created by experienced professionals, are tried and tested and are administered by teachers and counselors who are dedicated to their vocation of helping kids.
Sadly these camps and schools for troubled teens have no shortage of clients as more and more kids find themselves in trouble.
Working with at-risk youth has become a booming industry. And it is an industry in which the good survive. The aim of such programs is to not just help the teen during their stay in the camp or school, but to give them the skills, the attitudes and self-esteem to return to their families as a new person for life.
Much time, money and effort has been spent and still is to perfect and hone the programs on offer to at-risk youth. The teens are a precious cargo and their future can be changed for good with the right program in the right facility.
States and counties within states are giving resources and employing specialists to tackle the problem of at-risk youth. Of course the ideal situation would be prevention rather than cure. But if and when a young person gets into trouble, it is pleasing to know there are people, places and programs all designed to get the youth at-risk away from their problems and return them to being a happy and self-respecting young adult.
Here are additional resources you might be interested in:
