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Southeastern Kentucky - News Detail
About Us | Our Team | News | Media February 23, 2007 Robert Wood Johnson Foundation approves new funding to support Reclaiming Futures in the Mountains of Kentucky Portland, OR (February 23, 2007) -- The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation (RWJF) today announced its board has approved funding to support Reclaiming Futures in the Mountains of Kentucky, in partnership with Kentucky River Community Care (KRCC) for two more years. RWJF also approved funding for a national expansion of the Reclaiming Futures initiative, housed at Portland State University, citing the program's success in getting more services to teens in the justice system who are struggling with drugs and alcohol. The 10 communities, including Southeastern Kentucky, that have piloted Reclaiming Futures over the past five years reported significant improvements in the quality of juvenile justice and substance abuse treatment services, according to research conducted by the Urban Institute and the University of Chicago's Chapin Hall Center for Children. Overall, the RWJF board approved $6.5 million to support 10 pilot sites for two more years, which includes Breathitt, Lee, Owsley and Wolfe counties, and to help additional new sites implement the Reclaiming Futures model over the next four years. The expanded effort also will create a national resource center to provide data, case studies and other information to even more communities seeking to improve drug and alcohol services for justice-involved youth. "By spreading Reclaiming Futures across the country, we are creating a national movement that can make a vital difference in the health of youth and their families," said Kristin Schubert, RWJF program officer for Reclaiming Futures. "During the past five years, we have created a new national standard of care in juvenile justice. These pilot communities are leading the way." The Reclaiming Futures model combines system reform, treatment improvement and community engagement to help teens in the justice system get off drugs and alcohol. Teens who enter the justice system with serious drug and alcohol problems rarely receive treatment, even though research shows that young people who use drugs and alcohol are more likely to end up in trouble with the law, behave violently, or drop out of school. Key elements of the Reclaiming Futures model include screening and assessing teens for drug and alcohol problems; assembling a team to develop a personal care plan; training drug and alcohol treatment providers in evidence-based practices that work with teens; providing family support; and involving community members as mentors and role models to provide the support teens need. Beginning in 2002, 10 communities, including four counties in Southeastern Kentucky helped create and test the Reclaiming Futures model. The other nine communities are: Anchorage, Alaska.; Santa Cruz, Calif.; Chicago, Ill.; Marquette, Mich.; the state of New Hampshire; the Sovereign Tribal Nation of Sicangu Lakota in Rosebud, South Dakota; Dayton, Ohio; Portland, Ore.; and Seattle, Wash. "We have saved hundreds of thousands of dollars by getting kids involved in treatment, versus them going further into the court system," said Michelle Kilgore, KRCC's Project Director. "Throughout the project we have also seen that the RF youth are less likely to re-offend and more likely to receive the services they need, therefore allowing them the opportunity for a better future." Reclaiming Futures will invite applications from communities interested in participating as one of the new pilot sites. Successful applicants will be selected in the summer of 2007 and will receive technical assistance, on-site coaching, educational materials and invitations to national conferences and workshops. Application forms will be posted on the Reclaiming Futures Web site in late spring. About Reclaiming Futures About the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation ### |
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