Go Daddy 14455 N. Hayden Rd Suite 226 Scottsdale, AZ 85260 US
Restoring youth for a better outocme
Restoring youth for a better outocme
Providing evidence based interventions so at risk youth become well adjusted responsible members of the community
Our community needed a safety net, so we built one!
OUR HISTORY
The Summit That Started It All
In 2005 Judge Dorene S. Allen, Midland County Probate Court Judge convened a jurisdictional planning summit. The Court and local leaders in the community identified needs around justice involved youth or at-risk of becoming involved in the legal system.
SEARCH Institute and Developmental Assets
During this summit, Dick Dolinski, Founder of The Legacy Center for Community Success, introduced the Developmental Assets Research published by the Search Institute. The concept focuses on positive youth development. The SEARCH Institute identified 40 Developmental Assets youth need to thrive!
This resulted in the court adopted policy, in partnership with the community youth-serving agencies, to develop and implement a comprehensive, integrated, and systemic approach to reducing adolescent youths’ risk-taking behaviors.
A Nonprofit Like No Other
To implement and manage the policy, in 2008, Midland Kids First was formed. We began using the Developmental Asset research to measure the level of Assets as well as risk-taking behaviors of justice involved youth in Midland County. The results from the study indicated that participants possessed fewer than 20 assets and those with fewer than ten, participated in 12 of 24 risk-taking behaviors. It was no surprise the risk-taking behaviors measured were high for youth with few Assets. Similarly, it was unsurprising that these young people ended up in the court system.
Over the next two years programs were designed to increase Developmental Assets. The youth were surveyed again and asset levels increased significantly with correspondingly large declines in risk-taking and delinquent behaviors!
Today
We've extended our efforts to provide mentoring, wraparound and trauma informed services, drug treatment, strengthening families, and child maltreatment prevention programs.
Midland's youth-serving agencies embrace the Developmental Assets research and now design their programs around assets development.
Midland Kids First, Probate Court, and our community partners are proud of the results of these efforts.
- 87% Decline in delinquency
- 94% Decline in alcohol offenses
- 80% Decline in drug offenses
- 59% Reduction in drug use
Together We Are Stronger
Midland Kids First is founded in collaboration, knowing that it takes the community to raise these kids!
A MESSAGE FROM PROBATE COURT JUDGE DORENE S. ALLEN
Greetings to All:
Thank you for your continuing support of our work. We have seen significant improvement in outcomes for juveniles and their families who interfaced with the courts or are at-risk of being involved in the courts. This is the result of many years of focused work on evidence-based programming. Our delinquency rate continues to be extremely low because of the many programs that we have locally and support from the community. Our delinquency rate has an 82% reduction since 1998, which was the highest point for offenses committed by young people. The alcohol and drug Offenses for our youth have significantly declined. Our community has the advantage of the Recovering Youth Futures program – a program to identify and treat substance abuse problems with our local youth. The net effect in our community is wonderful-a significant decline in the use of drugs-including those at epidemic level in the nation and certainly in the adult population. There is a continued concern that our abuse and neglect numbers have not reduced. The numbers have not increased, but the continued need for the Court’s protection because of the abuse and neglect that children suffer in Midland County is s a concern that we have had for years. To that end, we are embarking on a community initiative developed by the U of Maryland called “Safe Environment for Every Kid – SEEK”. The program begins with the health care professional asking the parents to complete a questionnaire that identifies risk factors. Parents who present risk factors are referred to trained counselors/therapists who can address the identified issues. Our aim is to disrupt the generational abuse and neglect and create a new story for these families. In all that we do, we focus on making the maximum positive effort for our community. Together with our partners, we provide the momentum that helps us affect change, we use data driven models, and provide solutions that make a long-lasting difference.
OUR TEAM
Executive Committee
Sharon Mortensen - Board Chairperson
Brita Johnson - Vice Chair
Rod Coleman - Treasurer
Nicole Ford - Secretary
Michele Bell Ryan Griffus
Mark Bone Brian Millikin
Kathy Dollard Deana Schad
Atea Duso John Searles
Gib Giblin
Noel Contardi - President/CEO
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Your donation allows us to meet the needs of kids struggling more than most, giving them a future brighter than they imagined possible; giving them our best!