MEDIA RELEASE

March 1, 2017                                                          

KDOC Celebrates Launch of Therapy Program for Juvenile Offenders in Salina

On Wednesday in Salina, Gov. Sam Brownback and the Kansas Department of Corrections (KDOC) celebrated Cornerstones of Care for providing a program of therapy and supervision as an alternative to removing youth from their homes or incarcerating them.

Cornerstones of Care began providing Functional Family Therapy (FFT) services to the northeast section of Kansas in February.

A ceremony and reception at the Salina-area Chamber of Commerce brought together staff of KDOC, Cornerstones of Care and practitioners in youth services and juvenile justice from across the northeast region of FFT to discuss the new initiative.

For the past year, courts in Southeast Kansas have been employing FFT as an alternative to removing youth from their homes or incarcerating them. Now this data-driven combination of therapy and supervision for juvenile offenders is being made available to youth statewide. Cornerstones of Care will be the provider for 10 judicial districts, encompassing 29 counties in Northeast Kansas. EmberHope will be the provider of FFT in the western half of the state.

Gov. Sam Brownback spoke to the gathering about reforms to the juvenile justice system taking place in the state, which include the provision of FFT.

“Reducing the number of placements outside the home will allow money for community programs like this one,” said Gov. Brownback. “It’s a gradual process of reinvestment that we know over time will prove effective in Kansas like it has in other states for several decades.”

FFT provides therapy and supervision of youth still in their homes to help them become more adaptive and successful. For more than 40 years in numerous states, the program has been able to reduce reliance on out-of-home placement and its negative effects on the youth and family. FFT has successfully reduced recidivism from 25 to 60 percent in various states.

“We are thrilled to bring this internationally recognized model and positive outcomes to more communities,” said Denise Cross, President and CEO of Cornerstones of Care. “Together, we can help youth and their families overcome delinquency, substance abuse and violence.”

KDOC reported recently that 89 juvenile-justice-involved youth and their families in Southeast Kansas entered the FFT program instead of experiencing an out-of-home placement or secure confinement. Of those, just three were placed in out-of-home settings during FFT treatment. The agency said this is much improved from results of a 2014 study that found more than 51% of Kansas youth who were discharged from a Youth Residential Center II remained out of home six months post discharge.

“Youth who are participating in the FFT program in Southeast Kansas are responding better to treatment, not committing additional crimes, maintaining their bonds to family, and costing the state less by staying out of more restrictive settings,” KDOC Deputy Secretary of Juvenile Services Terri Williams said. “We couldn’t be more excited to see this proven program spread to the rest of the state.”

(Photo) Denise Cross, president and CEO of Cornerstones of Care, with Governor Sam Brownback.

###

Click below to connect to the Kansas Department of Correction’s Social Networks: