Issue #4 - Family Management

Needs Assessment Data Suggesting the Need (from ICJIA profile)

· Instances of child abuse and neglect in Ford County remained fairly stable throughout the 1990’s. Rates of child abuse and neglect in Ford County approximately matched rates in the other 73 Illinois rural counties.

· Instances of child sexual abuse in Ford County fluctuated greatly throughout the 1990’s, but were at decade-low levels in 1999

· 35 minors were referred to the Children’s Home and Aid Society of Illinois from 1997 to 1999.  Many of the minors were referred by either a law enforcement agency or by the probation department (collectively 68.6%).  Family conflict was the most frequent reason for the referral. 
 

· 41% of the respondents reported having had sexual intercourse at least once (45% male vs. 38% female). 

· Fairly low percentages of the respondents reported that they have positive family communications (21%) or that their parents are involved in their schooling (24%).

Need Identified from Data

The above data supported discussions by the Juvenile Justice Council that we live in a society of disintegrating families, with diminished family values and personal morals.  Youth are living with single parents, working parents, teen parents, or no parents. There are no role models for parents due to generations with poor parenting skills.  Children are faced with family violence, addictions, and sporadic supervision. They are pressured to engage in sexual activities by their peers, their hormones, and media influences.  Youth have low self-esteem and a poor vocabulary for dealing with problems. We would like to promote parenting responsibility and accountability, reduce the number of teenage parents, and foster a community where mental, physical, and sexual abuse in not tolerated. 

Goal
Reduce domestic offenses by 10%, and increase participation in family programs by 25%. 

Objectives
  OBJ1. Increase parent attendance and participation in family programs/meetings that target parent responsibility and accountability for their children.

      Action Steps
         1. Promote awareness of programs and utilization of programs already in
             place.
         2. Create better opportunities for parenting programs. 

  OBJ2. Reduce the number of teenage parents by 10%. 

       Action Steps
          1. Establish peer group that is proud of their abstinence and promote that
              group to younger children (6th- 8th)
          2. Support and encourage character education at the elementary level.
          3. Partner with community based organizations that work with similar 
              priority populations to provide early prevention programs, incorporating
              the topic of abstinence. 
          4. Risk education/ protective measures

   OBJ3.    Offer all Ford County communities with a minimum of 2 programs a year     that address mental, physical and sexual abuse.

        Action Steps
          1. Provide programs in K-12 for conflict resolution
          2. Begin public service announcements – free radio spots
          3. Circulate school newsletters to the public. 
 
 

Components of the interagency agreement specific to achieving the objective or more generally related to the goal of parental responsibility, reduction of teen parents, and reduction of mental, physical, and sexual abuse. 
 
 

Juvenile Justice System

• Law Enforcement
• Judges, State’s Attorneys
• Public Defenders
• County Board
• Probation 

Social Services:

• Mental Health Centers

Schools

• Area School Districts

• Community Groups

Law Enforcement 

Gibson City Police Department

• No agreement regarding this issue

Paxton Police Department 
Agreements pending

Piper City Police Department
Agreements pending

Ford County Sheriff's Department
Agreements pending
 

Judge and State's Attorney

Circuit Court Judge Steven Pacey
Agreements Pending 

State's Attorney Anthony Lee

• One person will attend full council meetings; when appropriate one person will attend committee meetings. 
• Assist with information sharing by providing the council with statistics regarding juvenile offenses
• Provide hand outs (pamphlets) to the community. 
• Identify and refer at risk youths/families. 
• Fashion sentences/dispositions that require youthful offenders to take responsibility for their actions and repair damages they have done. 
• Support local efforts to reduce or eliminate youth access to sexually explicit movies, videos and magazines, alcohol and tobacco.
• One person will attend meetings and take an active part in the Ford County Family Violence Coordinating Council. 
• Support, encourage and provide assistance to persons seeking orders of protection. 
• Support, encourage and implement orders of protective supervision for parents of court involved youth. 

 

Public Defender's

Harvey Welch
Agreements Pending

William Dueringer
Agreements Pending
 

Ford County Board 
Board President Deb Smith 
 
 

• Provide one person will attend full council meetings keeping in communication with each committee.  When appropriate one or more persons will attend committee meetings representing the board.
• Provide a meeting place for Juvenile Justice Council full council meetings and committee meetings as needed.
• Collaborate and encourage collaboration with Community Resource and Counseling Center to implement Functional Family Therapy, and Big Brothers, Big Sisters, Inc. to supply mentors to all who need it in the county.
• Support family nights – in particular set times during the year when families can spend time together without other activities competing.
• Model integrity at home, at the workplace, and in public.  Support and affirm youth when they act with integrity.
• Support work to reduce domestic violence and abuse by taking an active part in the Ford County Family Violence Coordinating Council

Probation and Court Services

Ford County Probation supports the juvenile justice council and agrees to help achieve the objectives generally related to the goal of parental responsibility, reduction of teen parents, and reduction of mental, physical, and sexual abuse by the following:

• Provide at least one committee person for the issue of family management. 
• Collaborate with Community Resource and Counseling Center with Family Functional Therapy. 
• Support and encourage orders of protective supervision for parents of court involved youth. 
• Assist in the implementation and sustainability of the family workshops through the Big Brother, Big Sister program. 
• Provide referral of services for court-involved youth to family counseling, individual counseling, parenting classes, or any other specialized counseling as is necessary in the best interest of the child. 
• Provide a meeting place for committee meetings as needed. 

Mental Health Centers

 Community Resource and Counseling Center 

• Provide speakers to any organization that wishes to have more information concerning general mental health issues and services available at CRCC. 

Area School Districts 

Paxton Buckley Loda District 10
 

• Provide contact persons, including but not limited to the high school counselor, social worker, and family and consumer science (home economics) teacher. 
• Collaborate with community agencies to exchange/provide information. 
• Host speakers to present programs to family management classes 
• Provide meeting space for meetings and activities, upon approval of the principal. 

• Continue to support parent/family programs, including but not limited to Classconnect, Lunchconnect, and Family nights. 

Community Groups 
 Agreements Pending