Sixteen-year-old Robert* might have run away from his home in Carroll County had it not been for the resources of LSSI’s Comprehensive Community Based Youth Services (CCBYS) program in Nachusa.
CCBYS staff work with at-risk youth ages 11-17 in Carroll, Lee, Ogle, and Whiteside Counties to prevent their involvement with the police, courts, or the Illinois Department of Children and Family Services. CCBYS provides counseling services for youth, which could include their families, as well as crisis services. Particularly because the program is free and serves a rural area where resources are limited, services are accessible and impactful.
“We set youth up with services they need,” said Ashly Regalado, Program Supervisor. Regalado is part of a four-person team who work with the area youth referred to the program, follow up on referrals, and respond to crisis calls. Some of the team’s youth clients are mandated for the services, while others are referred to them through community partnerships, including schools. Crisis intervention calls are made though local law enforcement.
Youth served by the program could be individuals who are on probation through the courts. Others could be dealing with family crisis and conflict, and CCBYS staff can either help a situation from escalating or be there in a crisis.
Each encounter varies, but an example of how CCBYS staff intervene could be when a youth has run away from home, or perhaps because of family conflict, the youth’s family does not want them in the home.
“We want to meet youth where they’re at, in the least restrictive environment,” Regalado said. In that same way, staff helps the parents. She said that both parents and youth have expressed that it’s the first time they feel like they’ve been heard after they meet with CCBYS staff.
It’s an important first step toward strengthening family communication dynamics.
*Name changed to protect confidentiality.
