1 The Parent Project® The largest court mandated juvenile diversion program in the country! The American Bar Association’s Center on Children and the Law

Parent Project®, Inc.2 Parent Project: Designed specifically for parents of adjudicated youth: Family conflict Truancy Drug Use Runaways Violent Children Youth Gangs Teen Suicidality

Parent Project®, Inc.3 Key Elements of Parent Project’s Success Solution-focused / Behavioral approach / Offers concrete, no nonsense answers Activity-based instruction Community collaborative / LE / Schools / Courts & Probation Empowers parents Offers on-going, emotional and practical support (parents call each other instead of calling you)

Parent Project®, Inc.4 Concrete Answers Example: Runaway Kids Call the Police & File Report Call every parent Call School Aggressively Pursue Child Remove all Clothing/Valuables from Home Print & Post Missing Flyer Disconnect, or, GPS child’s cell phone Check My Space, , etc.

Parent Project®, Inc.5 Minidoka County, Idaho Juvenile court petitions -33% Juvenile probation drug violations -20% Total # of kids on probation -30% Number of days in detention -24% School dropouts fell from 17% to 0 School expulsions plummeted from 72 to 0 (Parents in the class stopped calling their child’s JPO for help!) Source: OJJDP’s Journal “Juvenile Justice”, 2004 In three years:

Parent Project®, Inc.6 Do Parents Care?

Parent Project®, Inc.7 How do parents of strong- willed or out-of-control children feel? Overwhelmed Guilty

Parent Project®, Inc.8 Parents of high-risk kids are often burnt out... but they still love their kids. You are the key to getting your parents out! The Point!

Parent Project®, Inc.9 No Surprise Handing a flyer to parents will not get them out. Parents of high-risk kids need a personal invitation from YOU.

Parent Project®, Inc.10 Think back to the way parents of high-risk children “feel”. If you were one of these parents, what would you want to hear? What words would motivate you to come to a Parent Project class? Hint: Your parents are looking for a life-changing experience. Not another program.

Parent Project®, Inc.11 Don’t be afraid to push... “Your child needs you now more than ever.” “This program will help keep your child out of our system.” “You called me for help. Here it is.” “This class is only 24 hours long. Are you saying your child is not worth one day of your time?” What else could you say / do to encourage your parents to attend?

12 Open Forum Questions Finding classes More information