Youth WORKS
Youth WORKS
Youth WORKS (Wellness, Opportunity, and Resources for Key Services) is a youth violence prevention program dedicated to providing education and awareness to youth, parents, and community members on various youth violence topics. Some of these topics include dating violence, suicide awareness, bullying/cyberbullying and social media awareness.
The Youth WORKS program is grant-funded through the Illinois Department of Human Services (IDHS) and covers Lee, Ogle, Whiteside, and Carroll Counties. The Prevention Specialists for each of these counties utilize input from multiple community sources and avenues in order to provide the best youth services possible. The Youth WORKS team teaches an evidenced-based curriculum, holds parent and teacher forums, facilitates youth forums and small groups, participates in community and youth-events related to vocational and job readiness skills, and provides advocacy information and resources to youth.
Each of the counties within the Youth WORKS program has a separate Community Committee comprised of community members from all sectors coming together to help brainstorm ways to reach the youth and to help implement the services needed in the community. The four counties share an area project board, made up of community members across multiple sectors and counties, in order to better navigate the needs of the community and set a clear path to move forward. Utilizing these groups, the Prevention Specialists can reach youth and their communities in a multitude of ways.
The goal of the Youth WORKS program is to give the youth in our communities the skills, information and access to resources they need to make the best most appropriate decisions for themselves now and in the future.
Questions?
Contact Kelsey Kant, Youth WORKS Supervisor, at Kelsey.Kant@LSSI.org
