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The
Youthtrack Juvenile Sex Offender Treatment Program has been serving the
State of Utah and surrounding states since the early 1990's. The current
program allows for the treatment of thirty-two youth, from age twelve to
eighteen. The sixteen bed unit located in Logan houses clients of
below average cognitive functioning. All decisions regarding program,
unit, and room assignments take into account a client's age, size, mental
status, and risk factors. The overall desire is to place a client
where he can most easily feel comfortable and where he can succeed.
The program follows the guidelines of
the Revised Report from the National Task Force on Juvenile Sexual
Offending (1993), the National Council of Juvenile and Family Court
Judges, and the Standards of Treatment for Youth in Offense-Specific
Residential Programs (National Offense-Specific Residential Standards
Task Force, 1999).
Program Components
INDIVIDUAL INTERVENTIONS:
Weekly therapy sessions with primary therapist.
Collateral contact with caseworkers, probation officers, and other
agencies.
Written sexual offense specific treatment assignments (from acceptance
of responsibility through relapse prevention).
Crisis intervention.
FAMILY INTERVENTIONS:
Weekly multifamily therapy sessions.
Individual family sessions.
Family contact encouraged and facilitated through phone contact,
letters, visits, and passes.
GROUP THERAPIES:
Sex offender-specific group therapy
Conduct disorder/Criminal thinking group.
Deviant sexual fantasy work
Relapse prevention group
ACADEMIC INTERVENTIONS:
Education provided by local school districts.
Special education programming.
Academic testing
Development and maintenance of Individual Education Plans
PSYCHIATRIC CONSULTATION:
Monthly psychiatric consultations.
Monthly nursing consultations
Psychological, psychosexual, and neuropsychological evaluations as
deemed necessary.
SOCIAL SKILLS DEVELOPMENT:
Independent living skills.
Anger management.
Stress management.
Socialization skills.
Client Criteria
Males
Age 12 to 18.
Adjudicated for a sexual crime.
Able to function in a residential treatment setting.
Program Capabilities
All types of sexual deviancies, paraphilias, and fetishes.
Concurrent mood, anxiety, and other individual mental health issues.
Concurrent family dysfunction.
Trauma from personal
victimization's.
Concurrent substance abuse issues.
Concurrent academic difficulties.
Milieu Management / Peer
Culture
The Youthtrack staff members are trained to maintain a safe, therapeutic
environment where clients may feel comfortable to work on their personal
issues. The team-based approach allows for continuity throughout the
program and accountability by the clients to a specific set of program rules.
The clients are allowed to interact with peers in treatment where they encourage
and learn from one another. The treatment is divided into four phases:
Behavioral, Therapeutic, Leadership, and Preventative. The placement
and movement among the phases allows clients to focus on a specific area
of treatment at any given time.
Educational Programming
The goal of Youthtrack's education department
is to provide students with educational and therapeutic services that enable
the learner to construct, within himself, the ability to acquire knowledge,
skill, and value from life experiences. Youthtrack staff members are trained
to encourage self-motivated, lifelong learners who will leave the program
with the knowledge and skills necessary to return to the public school system,
obtain a diploma or GED, pursue post secondary opportunities, and obtain
meaningful employment. All youth participate in the educational component.
They attend year-round academic classes and work specifically on the competencies
that will help them achieve their educational or vocational goals.
Our staff believe that education
is a 24-hour a day undertaking. We have found that therapeutic, residential
living offers a rich resource for learning about social studies and basic
human interaction. Cooking and other activities teach math, science, and
language arts. Our staff members know that their most important role is
that of teacher.
Youthtrack, Inc. currently operates
10 alternative facility schools approved by the Colorado Department of
Education. This is in addition to our recently added programs in Florida,
and the programs mentioned in this website. The Education Team reviews
each youth's education file within the first five days of his/her placement.
The team consists of the teacher, the therapist, the education assistant,
and other assigned personnel. The student, his family, caseworker, and
other program staff consult in this review. The Education Team obtains
the information necessary to prepare the Individualized Education Plan
(IEP) for special education students. A Specialized Education Plan (SEP)
is developed for students who are not identified as having a disability.
Information reviewed includes: current achievement test results, education
records from public schools and previous placements, social/emotional
evaluations, school credits earned, and observed or documented academic/vocational
strengths and weaknesses.
Information missing from the youth's current
file is requested through the caseworker, previous placements, and the
youth's home school district. Education staff members administer tests
and informal assessments when records are not available or are outdated,
ensuring an accurate understanding of the student's needs. All meetings
held for students as having a a disability under the Individuals with
Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) comply with all state and federal laws.
Educational planning incorporates goals and objectives in the area of
academic, behavioral, and transitional/vocational needs. When a student
enters the program with a current IEP, a transfer of placement meeting
is conducted and the existing plan is reaffirmed and followed. A new IEP
is written for those students with an education plan that is outdated
or is in need of annual review.
Organizational Experience
Youthtrack, Inc., was created in 1995
with the sole purpose of designing and operating benchmark programs at
the local, state, and national levels. Based in Littleton, Colorado,
Youthtrack is the largest provider of services to youth in the Colorado
juvenile justice system, operating 19 diverse programs serving over 550
youth between the ages of 12 and 20. Youthtrack's continuum of care also
includes: eight treatment and detention programs serving over 275 youths
in the state of Florida; three intensive residential sex offender
programs serving approximately 32 youths in Utah; and a residential
treatment center in Idaho for females.
Youthtrack is a subsidiary of
ResCare Inc., based in Louisville, Kentucky. ResCare is recognized as
the leading provider of quality services to more than 16,900 consumers
in 28 states in its Division for Persons with Disabilities. It also
serves approximately 9,200 at-risk and special needs youth in 17 states
and Puerto Rico in its Division for Youth Services. ResCare, now in its
25th year, employs approximately 25,000 people.
The depth of Youthtrack's programming,
coupled with its committed and well-trained staff, ensures that the
multiple needs and concerns of placement agencies will be addressed.
Youthtrack's current contracts include:
Colorado Department of Youth Corrections
Utah Department of Children and Family Services
Idaho Department of Juvenile Corrections
Florida Department of Juvenile Corrections
Colorado Department of Social Services
Nevada Department of Children and Family Services
Montana Department of Children and Family Services
Utah Department of Youth Corrections
Multiple private pay sources
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