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Communities are Safe for Children, Youth and Families (Carroll) (Formerly Safety)

Story Behind the Curve

Carroll County's juvenile serious non-violent arrests have been on a downward trend since 2006. Factors attributed to this success date back to LMB strategic planning beginning in 2005 and an ongoing commitment to proved evidence-based services for families with school-age youth in Carroll County. In this way, services would reach younger children and their parents before issues lead to costly deep-end services. Addressing family issues (parental over or under-involvement, lack of adult supervision, poor communication, poor bonding, negativity, reasonable consequences for behavior) has been shown to decrease risky or acting-out behavior in youths. Brief Strategic Family Therapy (BSFT) was selected because it has shown to be effective with elementary, middle and high school students, and is both a prevention and intervention model. It successfully reduces problem behaviors in children and strengthens their families.

The Local Access Mechanism (LAM) provides easy access to information and service and improved coordination and utilization of existing services through a two-pronged approach: Family Navigators (legacy parents of children with special needs) field phone calls and provide parents with immediate, up-to-date information and referrals. These navigators are trained in active listening and can quickly determine callers' needs. In addition, that initial phone call provides a single point of access for families needing more intensive services.

Strategies to improve these indicators

Brief Strategic Family Therapy

LAM- SPA & Family Navigators - Get Connected Family Resource Center


Why Is This Important?

Safety is paramount to the well-being of children, families and communities. In the absence of safety, we see its effects in abuse, neglect, juvenile delinquency, low educational attainment, unemployment, substance abuse, crime and homelessness.

Carroll County is focusing on juvenile delinquency and the indicators of juvenile offenders start on average at age 7, much earlier than the average age of first court contact for Crime Index offenses, which is age 14.5 (US Department of Justice-OJJDP). The Program of Research on the Causes and Correlates of Delinquency, research teams at the State University of New York at Albany , University of Colorado, and University of Pittsburgh found the following: the development of delinquent behavior by boys generally takes place in an orderly, predictable fashion, with less serious problems preceding more serious problem behaviors. Therefore, it is better to intervene with younger children at the beginning of these problem behaviors. The children more at risk include those that are predisposed to mental health problems, low academic achievement, substance use, poverty, and problematic family-functioning. This includes parents/caregivers who are over or under-involved with their children, lack rules and consequences for behavior, are inconsistent, have poor family communication, cohesiveness and bonding. To change a child, we must change a family dynamic.

When juvenile problems are overlooked or not addressed, communities pay a high price-monetarily and otherwise. The cost of detention and out-of-home placement (average=$240.99/per day/per youth) is expensive and does not necessarily improve public safety. (Justice Policy Institute)

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Scorecard Container Measure Action Actual Value Target Value Tag S A m/d/yy m/d/yyyy