Listen to thisIt takes a community to help at-risk youth
How can we possibly make a difference in the lives of so many at-risk youths? Is it our moral obligation to help them succeed? Is it even fiscally responsible to try?
I believe both.
What is the definition of at-risk youth? Who are these children?
The law defines at-risk youth as children younger than age 18 who are:
Absent from home 72 consecutive hours without parent(s) permission;
Out of parental control with behavior that substantially endangers the health, safety and welfare of themselves or others;
Children with a serious substance abuse problem for which there are no charges pending.
Chief's philosophy
So what is happening in Central Minnesota to address the problems of at-risk youth?
I sat down with St. Cloud Police Chief Blair Anderson to learn more about his philosophy and passion for our youth. The police department, through the Juvenile Justice Advisory Committee, received a grant for $86,000 via Minnesota’s Office of Public Safety to begin Anderson’s Youth Initiative Program. His St. Cloud Youth Leadership Academy is a once-a-year, one-week boot camp experience, offered at Camp Ripley in Little Falls. While the program only serves 20 youths, it can profoundly affect the lives of those kids.
Anderson is working to create new and innovative programs, but he isn’t about to reinvent the wheel. Partnering with successful programs is part of the plan. Mentoring is a huge part of this initiative.
“Bigs in Blue” is a partnership with Big Brothers Big Sisters of Central Minnesota, which pairs on-duty officers with children on the Bigs waiting list. Working side-by-side with nonprofit agencies, schools, therapists and others will make a difference in the lives of at-risk kids, Anderson said.
“What we’re teaching here is how to be a good community member,” he said. “And how to apply what you have learned here when you get back home … to your street, your neighborhood, your school, whatever. They get to see firsthand, and then they’ll know that there are people out here who give a damn. They didn’t just say so. They showed them.”
Pay for programs now, or chip in more later
And Anderson’s ideas work. Research from the Amherst H. Wilder Foundation in St. Paul shows that evidence-based practices work in a variety settings. Investing in people, enhancing the relationships they have with each other, and working to promote health and resilience will help young people reach their potential, which creates a vibrant community.
What the heck does all that mean? It means, “It takes a village.”
Yes, it does cost money. Difficult budget decisions have curtailed many summer youth programs. St. Cloud-area communities, for example, used to provide many recreational activities for kids in city parks – at no charge to the kids. Arts and crafts, little plays, field hockey, singing, baton-twirling. Yes, as a fourth-grader growing up in 1970s Sauk Rapids, I learned how to twirl my little baton.
But I digress. What is the cost if we don’t put money toward helping today’s youth?
Your view may include that it is not the role of government to take care of all of our social issues, and we’re just throwing away our money. It’s the parents’ job to raise their kids right, or they need to pull themselves up by their boot straps, like I did.
But here’s the deal. If we do nothing, many of these at-risk youth will go down the wrong path.
Some will do so because of choices they’ve made, others by their life circumstance, and even more because they simply didn’t know how to do better. Sadly, some will end up in our jails or prisons, or even worse, may not live to see adulthood.
The bottom line is this: If we don’t invest financially in our troubled, at-risk youth today, we can be assured that we will be paying for some of them tomorrow.
Lori Long
16 July 013
