By Lara O’Toole, LMSW There’s just something special about face-to-face interactions. There’s just something special that allows for a certain type of magic to form in relationships, and a certain type of enthusiasm for the work at hand. This magic is far more difficult to find within the emails, conference calls, or webinars of… Read more »
Blog
Athletes for Change, A Unique Approach to Residential Care.
Athletes For Change (AFC), a residential treatment center located in De Soto just south of Dallas, has joined the Creating a Culture of Care initiative as our latest intensive support site. We visited them in January and found out about their programming. Believing that “teens in crisis deserve loving and supporting environments,” they have… Read more »
TNOYS visits Bexar County Juvenile Probation Centers
TNOYS staff recently had the opportunity to visit Bexar County Juvenile Probation Department facilities. We were accompanied by Chris Castillo from Roy Maas Meadowland and Krystle Ramsay and Cindy Marrs from Hill Country Youth Ranch, who are participating in our Creating a Culture of Care project, and LaQuinton Wagner, a youth advocate who works with… Read more »
TNOYS Honors the Memory of Dan Peevy
Dan Peevy, 79, of Eagle Lake,a past Board member of TNOYS from 2000 through 2007, and Board Chair 2005-06, passed away in Columbus, Texas on January 30th. Daniel Alfred Peevy was born February 5, 1934 in Houston. He and his wife, Shirley, met and graduated from Stephen F. Austin High School in Houston in 1952. … Read more »
Uncovering the Scope of Youth Homelessness in Texas
A barrier to providing services for homeless youth is the lack of accurate data on the number of young people ages 16-24 who do not have stable housing. Homeless youth are difficult to count for several reasons. First, youth who are homeless are not part of a service delivery system, such as the foster care… Read more »
Harris County Meets the “TIP” Model
The transition to adulthood is challenging for all youth, but it is especially perilous for youth with mental health conditions. Youths and young adults ages 16-24 with serious and persistent mental health needs and their family members often have difficulty accessing appropriate mental health, employment, education, and housing services. This is problematic because research… Read more »
TNOYS Youth Advocates Working to Reform Texas Juvenile Justice System.
Advocacy in Action!
We have been busy as the Texas 83rd Legislative session gets into full swing! On January 22nd, TNOYS advocacy staff and members of the advocacy committee visited 10 Senate and House Offices to stand up for the STAR program. The reception was encouraging, and several offices told us they expected STAR to continue to be… Read more »
Eliminating Level Systems in Residential Treatment Centers
As RTCs are moving towards eliminating level and point systems in their programs, we thought it would be interesting to hear what residents had to say about their experience. We negotiated with a local RTC to interview youth who had recently eliminated the level system on their cottage. We met with a group of five… Read more »